IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i18p14027-d1245097.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Business Model for Scaling Social Impact towards Sustainability by Social Entrepreneurs

Author

Listed:
  • Kishore Kumar François

    (NUCB Undergraduate School, Nagoya University of Commerce and Business, Sagamine 4-4, Komenoki-cho, Nisshin 470-0193, Aichi, Japan)

  • Hoe Chin Goi

    (NUCB Business School, Nagoya University of Commerce and Business, 1 Chome-3-1 Nishiki, Naka Ward, Nagoya 460-0003, Aichi, Japan)

Abstract

This paper examines a Business Model (BM) from a socio-economic system perspective to discern key factors and understand its interactions resulting in the Scaling of Social Impact (SSI) in Social Entrepreneurship (SE). Previously, studies have explained the importance of the BM in relation to SE. However, there is a lack of empirical studies on how a BM’s transitions through participation of various actors result in the SSI, causing a gap in this field’s research. This research applies a qualitative analysis on a single case study of a Japanese social startup, “mymizu”, the first water refill application platform in Japan. The findings show that collaboration amongst different stakeholders on the initial phase of the BM could increase awareness of responsible consumption, convert into actual users for sustainability, and change their behavior. Secondly, members of society could take on dual roles, both as users and collaborators in the BM, which results in an exponential scaling effect of the Social Impact (SI). This paper contributes towards adding a Participatory Stakeholder (PS) to the ecosystem of the SSI and building a Regenerative BM (RBM) that is relevant in SE towards sustainability.

Suggested Citation

  • Kishore Kumar François & Hoe Chin Goi, 2023. "Business Model for Scaling Social Impact towards Sustainability by Social Entrepreneurs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-17, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:18:p:14027-:d:1245097
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/18/14027/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/18/14027/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Drencheva, Andreana & Stephan, Ute & Patterson, Malcolm G. & Topakas, Anna, 2021. "Navigating interpersonal feedback seeking in social venturing: The roles of psychological distance and sensemaking," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 36(4).
    2. Filipe Santos, 2012. "A Positive Theory of Social Entrepreneurship," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 111(3), pages 335-351, December.
    3. Douglas A. Bosse & Robert A. Phillips & Jeffrey S. Harrison, 2009. "Stakeholders, reciprocity, and firm performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 447-456, April.
    4. Sanchita Bansal & Isha Garg & Gagan Deep Sharma, 2019. "Social Entrepreneurship as a Path for Social Change and Driver of Sustainable Development: A Systematic Review and Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-28, February.
    5. Jeffrey S. Harrison & Douglas A. Bosse & Robert A. Phillips, 2010. "Managing for stakeholders, stakeholder utility functions, and competitive advantage," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(1), pages 58-74, January.
    6. Brett R. Smith & Geoffrey M. Kistruck & Benedetto Cannatelli, 2016. "The Impact of Moral Intensity and Desire for Control on Scaling Decisions in Social Entrepreneurship," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 133(4), pages 677-689, February.
    7. Giovanna Attanasio & Nadia Preghenella & Alberto Felice De Toni & Cinzia Battistella, 2022. "Stakeholder engagement in business models for sustainability: The stakeholder value flow model for sustainable development," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 860-874, March.
    8. Gerhards, Jan & Greenwood, Dan, 2021. "One Planet Living and the legitimacy of sustainability governance: From standardised information to regenerative systems," SocArXiv z4ja7, Center for Open Science.
    9. Uvin, Peter, 1995. "Fighting hunger at the grassroots: Paths to scaling up," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 23(6), pages 927-939, June.
    10. Zahra, Shaker A. & Gedajlovic, Eric & Neubaum, Donald O. & Shulman, Joel M., 2009. "A typology of social entrepreneurs: Motives, search processes and ethical challenges," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 24(5), pages 519-532, September.
    11. Islam, Syrus M., 2020. "Towards an integrative definition of scaling social impact in social enterprises," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 13(C).
    12. Anna Kwiotkowska, 2022. "Organizational Capabilities and Social Entrepreneurship: A Fuzzy-set Approach," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(1), pages 272-285.
    13. Benoît Demil & Xavier Lecocq & Vanessa Warnier, 2018. ""Business model thinking", business ecosystems and platforms: the new perspective on the environment of the organization," Post-Print hal-02114512, HAL.
    14. Bolton, Ronan & Hannon, Matthew, 2016. "Governing sustainability transitions through business model innovation: Towards a systems understanding," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(9), pages 1731-1742.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Barbara Bradač Hojnik & Katja Crnogaj, 2020. "Social Impact, Innovations, and Market Activity of Social Enterprises: Comparison of European Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-15, March.
    2. Sophie Bacq & Kimberly A. Eddleston, 2018. "A Resource-Based View of Social Entrepreneurship: How Stewardship Culture Benefits Scale of Social Impact," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 152(3), pages 589-611, October.
    3. Pradeep Kumar Hota, 2023. "Tracing the Intellectual Evolution of Social Entrepreneurship Research: Past Advances, Current Trends, and Future Directions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 182(3), pages 637-659, January.
    4. Islam, Syrus M., 2020. "Towards an integrative definition of scaling social impact in social enterprises," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 13(C).
    5. Longinos Marín & Catalina Nicolás & Alicia Rubio, 2019. "How Gender, Age and Education Influence the Entrepreneur’s Social Orientation: The Moderating Effect of Economic Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(17), pages 1-16, August.
    6. Patricio Osorio-Vega, 2019. "The Ethics of Entrepreneurial Shared Value," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 157(4), pages 981-995, July.
    7. Rubio-Andrés, Mercedes & Ramos-González, Mª del Mar & Sastre-Castillo, Miguel Ángel & Gutiérrez-Broncano, Santiago, 2023. "Stakeholder pressure and innovation capacity of SMEs in the COVID-19 pandemic: Mediating and multigroup analysis," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).
    8. Robin Stevens & Nathalie Moray & Johan Bruneel, 2015. "The Social and Economic Mission of Social Enterprises: Dimensions, Measurement, Validation, and Relation," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(5), pages 1051-1082, September.
    9. Iuliu Marin IVANESCU & Camelia M. GHEORGHE & Gina Gilet SZTRUTEN, 2013. "Social Entrepreneurship In Eu Region," Romanian Economic Business Review, Romanian-American University, vol. 8(4.1), pages 416-426, december.
    10. Shubhabrata Basu & Anita Sharma, 2014. "Exploring Stewardship as an Antecedent Behavioural Trait of Social Entrepreneurs," Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Emerging Economies, Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, vol. 23(1), pages 19-33, March.
    11. Elaydi, Raed & McLaughlin, Josetta, 2012. "Cultivating terroir in subsistence markets: Development of terroir strategy through harmony-with-community framework," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 65(12), pages 1743-1748.
    12. Lopez-Cozar, C. & Priede, T. & Rodríguez-Lopez, A., 2015. "Evaluating The Legal Environment For Social Entrepreneurship In America And Europe," Revista Galega de Economía, University of Santiago de Compostela. Faculty of Economics and Business., vol. 24(1), pages 101-110.
    13. Sophie Bacq & Chantal Hartog & Brigitte Hoogendoorn, 2016. "Beyond the Moral Portrayal of Social Entrepreneurs: An Empirical Approach to Who They Are and What Drives Them," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 133(4), pages 703-718, February.
    14. Syrus M Islam, 2022. "Social impact scaling strategies in social enterprises: A systematic review and research agenda," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 47(2), pages 298-321, May.
    15. Sophie Bacq & Ruth V. Aguilera, 2022. "Stakeholder Governance for Responsible Innovation: A Theory of Value Creation, Appropriation, and Distribution," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(1), pages 29-60, January.
    16. Bidhan L. Parmar & Adrian Keevil & Andrew C. Wicks, 2019. "People and Profits: The Impact of Corporate Objectives on Employees’ Need Satisfaction at Work," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 154(1), pages 13-33, January.
    17. Oluyomi A. Osobajo & David Moore, 2017. "Who is Who? Identifying the Different Sub-groups of Secondary Stakeholders within a Community: A Case Study of the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria Communities," International Business Research, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 10(9), pages 188-209, September.
    18. Mitchell, J. Robert & Israelsen, Trevor L. & Mitchell, Ronald K. & Lim, Dominic S.K., 2021. "Stakeholder identification as entrepreneurial action: The social process of stakeholder enrollment in new venture emergence," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 36(6).
    19. McSweeney, Jordan J. & McSweeney, Kevin T. & Webb, Justin W. & Sandoval, Rosalyn G., 2022. "Passion drove me here: Exploring how types of entrepreneurial passion influence different entrepreneurial intentions," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 18(C).
    20. Dutta, Sunasir, 2019. "Seeing parochially and acting locally: Social exposure, problem identification and social entrepreneurship," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 34(6).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:18:p:14027-:d:1245097. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.