This book offers a rethinking of the burgeoning research on not-for-profit organizations and socially responsible economics. Adopting a comparative approach, the chapters explore and reinterpret the impact of social enterprises on the provision of general-interest services, work integration, microfinance, and fair trade, and show how these enterprises form the hub of an emerging economy of social responsibility. The book provides a new interpretation of social enterprises as entrepreneurial organizations that pursue social objectives and are successful due to the non-self-seeking motives of their members. This book will be of interest to postgraduate students, professionals working in the not-for-profit sector, and scholars interested in socially responsible economics. It is particularly suitable for seminars and workshops focusing on the management of not-for-profit organizations, sustainable development, and globalization.

This book offers a rethinking of the burgeoning research on not-for-profit organizations and socially responsible economics. Adopting a comparative approach, the chapters explore and reinterpret the impact of social enterprises on the provision of general-interest services, work integration, microfinance, and fair trade, and show how these enterprises form the hub of an emerging economy of social responsibility. The book provides a new interpretation of social enterprises as entrepreneurial organizations that pursue social objectives and are successful due to the non-self-seeking motives of their members.

This book will be of interest to postgraduate students, professionals working in the not-for-profit sector, and scholars interested in socially responsible economics. It is particularly suitable for seminars and workshops focusing on the management of not-for-profit organizations, sustainable development, and globalization.

What are the characteristics of social enterprises? What are the future prospects for social enterprises? What do social enterprises contribute?

Analyzing social enterprises in fifteen different countries, The Emergence of Social Enterprise seeks to answer these important questions while investigating the remarkable growth in the 'third sector'.

Using the social enterprises as case-studies, theory and practice is combined in a compelling argument to support the concept of an 'emergence' of social enterprise. Written by leading academics, in an accessible yet informed style, this book will be vital reading for all those studying and teaching non-profit organizations, social policy, social economy and civil society.

By comparing the different national experiences of each country, the book traces the most significant developments in social entrepreneurship emerging in Europe. The work also examines the more traditional non-profit or third sector organizations. The final chapters present an initial attempt to outline a theory of social enterprise.
The research confirms that organizations which have simultaneously an entrepreneurial dynamic and a social aim are expanding in many countries. The contributors suggest that these enterprises not only enhance social services in welfare states, but also supply an additional and often innovative provision, mixing public and private resources and voluntary and paid workers. For these reasons, social enterprises deserve serious attention from policy-makers, practitioners and academics interested in a more pluralistic economy and a new Welfare Society.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203164679

The Oxford Handbook of Mutuals and Co-Owned Business investigates all types of 'member owned' organizations, whether consumer co-operatives, agricultural and producer co-operatives, worker co-operatives, mutual building societies, friendly societies, credit unions, solidarity organizations, mutual insurance companies, or employee-owned companies. Such organizations can be owned by their consumers, the producers, or the employees - whether through single-stakeholder or multi-stakeholder ownership. This complex set of organizations is named differently across countries: from 'mutual' in the UK, to 'solidarity cooperatives' in Latin America. In some countries, such organizations are not even officially recognized and thus lack a specific denomination. For the sake of clarity, this Handbook will refer to member-owned organizations to encompass the variety of non-investor-owned organizations, and in the national case study chapters the terms used will be those most widely employed in that country. These alternative corporate forms have emerged in a variety of economic sectors in almost all advanced economies since the time of the industrial revolution and the development of capitalism, through the subsequent creation and dominance of the limited liability company. Until recently, these organizations were generally regarded as a rather marginal component of the economy. However, over the past few years, member-owned organizations have come to be seen in some countries, at least, as potentially attractive in light of their ability to tackle various economic and social concerns, and their relative resilience during the financial and economic crises of 2007-2013.