Date of Award

6-2015

Document Type

Master Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Business (Research)

Department

Business Studies

First Advisor

Breda O Dwyer

Second Advisor

Dr Colm O Doherty

Abstract

Internationally, social entrepreneurship is a relatively recent phenomenon; an expanding area of interest to researchers, academia, policy makers and the general public. Social entrepreneurship seeks to create and sustain social value. The concept of social entrepreneurship is contested, because it is capable of multiple interpretations. The concept is informed by a number of academic, practitioner and policy streams across a number of jurisdictions. The concept encompasses themes of social economic activity; activities of nonprofit organisations; the promotion of social innovation; new types of philanthropy and a corporate sector intent on behaving in a more socially responsible way.

This sphere of activity in Ireland is mainly informed by social enterprise organisations operating in the social economy and by the promotion of social entrepreneurial initiative by philanthropic organisations. There is however, the acceptance that the activity is comparatively underdeveloped in Ireland. Social economic activity in Ireland lags behind European averages, and this research has found individuals engaged in social entrepreneurial activity, who do not identify with the concept of the social entrepreneurship. This study sought to increase the visibility and knowledge on this sector, and specifically how it might be supported by training. The purpose of this research was to investigate the training needs of social entrepreneurs in Ireland.

The study identified key training requirements for those engaged in this activity. It also found a certain convergence on the skills and competencies required for this activity, which focused on sustaining the activity through income generation, the increasing need to prove the worth of the social value created, and the need to acquire a suite of soft skills necessary to work in a complex, multi-constituency environment. The study holds that these findings need to be contextualised by the requirements of the practitioner, the outcome sought by educators, and an environment lacking an enabling policy to stimulate the identification and value of those engaging in social entrepreneurial activity.

Access Level

info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

Coverage

August 2024

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