Radar | Beyond Profit | scale
Sizing Up Scale — Is there more to it than that?
In the most recent issue of Beyond Profit’s online newsletter Radar, the issue of the importance of scale is posed. I enjoyed the quick read especially with the willingness to engage corporations in achieving true scale. One of my complaints regarding the concept of scale in social entrepreneurship is the fact that we often have a lower standard for scale with regard to social enterprises than we do for regular startups. What constitutes a success for Twitter is likely different to that of a social enterprise.
By acknowledging the need to partner with actual MNCs, the post understands that true scale must operate on a corporate scale. For that I support Beyond Profit’s stance.
I look forward to your comments.
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2 Comments on “Sizing Up Scale — Is there more to it than that?”
Scale has many benefits for an enterprise, idea, innovation or campaign. It can:
• Optimize use of resources
• Improve efficiency and lower cost
• Increase impact to create a firestorm of positive change
• Achieve system-wide impact—a tipping point
• Increase donor or investor demand for an idea
• Create more expertise and experience around an idea
• Produce evidence that one theory of change is better than others
However, scale is truly important because there are 1.2 billion people struggling in poverty. That big problem requires big solutions OR a small solution replicated to lead to big change.
Rather than look to MNCs, we have innovations all around us to leverage for big change. Self-help groups in India (referred to as savings groups elsewhere) are one of these. In less than two decades self-help groups in India have grown to encompass 86+ million women who come together in a group averaging 14 members every week or two to save and find solutions to daily problems with there peers.
Sean Kline
I agree with the gist of what you are saying. However what I was pointing out is tht often times we have a lower standard for what constitutes scale for a social entrepreneur than we do for normal businesses.
For that reason I think partnering with corporations that have already solved the scale issue would enable SEs to do the same.