CHAPTER 3

1. The protocols for assessing ideas as opportunities discussed in this lesson follow
a linear, mechanistic approach to a problem solving favored by Western
societies. In essence, they assume that ideas exist in the entrepreneur’s
environment and must be found. An emerging competing school of thought holds
that entrepreneurs create ideas from the relationships, resources, and
experiences resident in their environments- a more organic approach. In your
opinion, which of these schools of thought-better describes reality, and why?
- To this point, we have been discussing opportunity from the perspective of
business entrepreneurship. How might this be translated for the social
entrepreneurship world? Like business entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs need
to identify the needs and wants of their “customers”—the target beneficiaries of
their efforts. Clayton Christensen, a Harvard business professor, refers to this as
a “job” that the customer needs to have done for them (Christensen & Raynor,
2003). Presumably, this is a job that the customer is either unable or unwilling to
do for themselves. In social entrepreneurship it is most likely the former;
therefore, the question for the social entrepreneur is “How can I do this job for
this target beneficiary in a unique way that improves her or his life?

2. Which opportunity recognition tool discussed in this lesson resonates most for
you, and why?
- Opportunity recognition is the process of identifying a feasible niche in the
market for the business. It involves continuous brainstorming for new and
better ideas. It is used in continuous process improvement to make the
already available goods and services better. They observe the changing
environment and events in their professional or daily life. They talk to people
in their network. They search for gaps in the market. For example, you might
design a method or a process that allows saving production costs, and
therefore delivering a product in a cheaper way.
3. If you were to guess, what percentage of social entrepreneurs engage in formal
assessment of their ideas as compared with those who do so informally? Explain
your reasoning. What are the advantages of each approach? What are the
disadvantages?
- Social business is drawing in developing measures of ability, cash, and
consideration, yet alongside its rising notoriety has come less conviction
about what precisely a social business visionary is and does in the beginning,
the field of social entrepreneurs.
4. What is the relationship between the social value proposition of a social venture
and its mission.
- “Value proposition” refers to the benefits a company promises to create and
deliver to its customers. Written down as a statement, it points out the
reasons why someone should buy a product/service from that business.
However, when it comes to the social sector, we believe a broader definition
of “value proposition” is needed. As a matter of fact, successful social
enterprises like Specialisterne simultaneously create value for both customers
and beneficiaries. By looking at such examples, value creation goes beyond
target’s ability, interest or even willingness to pay. So, “value proposition”
should get re-defined accordingly.