General Information
Instructor(s)
- Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Business Design (s)
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship (c)
- Social Impact & Sustainability (c)
Target Audience
This course is aimed at students who want to start social ventures, change an existing venture to become more sustainable, or simply learn about the principles of social entrepreneurship.
Format
Intensive format over 2 weekends – Jan 21/22, 28/29 from 9:00am-4:00pm
Course Mission and Scope
In this course, students will learn how entrepreneurs create organizations that address social problems using innovative, sustainable approaches. Students will examine a variety of social venture forms, and consider how such ventures can be evaluated, managed, and financed.
Social Entrepreneurship is organized around a live case consulting project. Each year, social enterprises apply to receive free consulting services from Rotman students in this course. We work intensively with our organizational partners to learn about the problem they face and generate potential solutions. The course culminates in a live presentation to organization leaders and a report of findings, which is often shared with board members and other leaders. Past organizational partners include The Jane Goodall Institute-Canada, OpenImpact, Services and Housing in the Province (SHIP), and Frontier College.
The course is hands-on and project-based. Those who enjoy critically discussing ideas, and then acting on those ideas, will enjoy this course.
Evaluation and Grade Breakdown
| Component | Due Date | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Class Contribution | Ongoing | 10% |
| Case Analysis | TBD | 25% |
| Group Report | TBD | 30% |
| Group Presentation | TBD | 10% |
| Team Contribution | TBD | 10% |
| Journals | TBD | 15% |
Required Resources
Links to readings are provided in the course outline.
Sample readings include:
- Martin & Osberg (2007) Stanford Social Innovation Review. “Social Entrepreneurship: The Case for Definition”
- Leimsider (2014) “5 Bad Reasons to Start a For-Profit Social Enterprise”
- Mandela, Nelsonn. 1995. Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela. Boston: Little. (pp. 89-95)
- Ivey Case: Child in Need Institute: Non-Profit or Hybrid?
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