Questions and stuff Posts in the discussion thread "Questions and stuff" - Self-explanatory. Put stuff you wanna ask da man. :-) Thu, 23 May 2019 09:53:09 +0000 Re: Questions and stuff Thu, 25 Jan 2007 09:05:57 +0000 skapur 7444 Another…

Do you think that there is such a thing as too many entrepreneurs or a point at which such entrepreneurial ventures will take away from one another? Additionally, do you think that there will come a point when entrepreneurs are no longer necessary?

While is is relatively easy to measure the effectiveness of entrepreneurship, measuring the effectiveness of social entrepreneurship is admittedly more difficult. How would you go about measuring this? And even when "social good" is occurring, should you/how do you determine whether that good is impetus enough to continue their venture, make other plans or wrap it up entirely? You mainly document successes, but I am sure many have failed in this arena. What would you say to them? How do you distinguish success from failure?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Thu, 25 Jan 2007 08:52:34 +0000 skapur 7444 Do you think that non-profit entrepreneurs are more committed to positive world change than the for profit entrepreneurs? Does the involvement of money in this arena create more of an incentive to get involved, a more effective solution to global/local problems, or rather a less of a passion for creating social change?

You mention and describe the Ashoka Foundation rather extensively in your book.Do you think that such involvement helps the progress of social entrepreneurs and adds more incentive for social ventures to take place, or rather the burning obsession with creating change that is so essential to entrepreneurship is ample? Also, what was it about this organization that interested you?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Thu, 25 Jan 2007 08:36:59 +0000 heesun 5860 What should social entrepreneurs be careful of, if anything at all? Social entrepreneurship by definition should bring about a better result, but have there been cases where harm has been done? What comes to mind is perhaps negative effects on a country's culture due to lifestyle changes. How can social entrepreneurs overcome barriers that are not as simply resolved through facilitating access or distributing resources?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Thu, 25 Jan 2007 06:30:35 +0000 jlee 6665 Do you consider entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship to be fundamentally different or just two ways of looking at the same concept? How would you describe what makes something a social ventures, specifically in the context of for-profit organizations?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Mon, 22 Jan 2007 07:18:26 +0000 rmohamed 5732 1. You list one of the six qualities of a successful social entrepreneur as possessing a "strong ethical impetus." What is it about having this trait that you think allows one to achieve success. If it has to do with motivation, could that motivation not come from some other source besides an ethical impetus?

2. Do you think it is conceptually possible or relevant to quantify "social good"?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Tue, 16 Jan 2007 07:20:44 +0000 jchu1225 6342 Not all people were made to be social entrepreneurs. What would you define as the main criteria for successful social entrepreneurs, and what would be some practical steps to determine one's own "fit" in such a career? Of all the traits you've researched, what would you find most crucial in the lives of those you've observed or come into contact?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Tue, 16 Jan 2007 05:25:49 +0000 jkass 6047 Many of us have remarked that a common thread among successful entrepreneurs seems to be well-connectedness. How important is who you know compared to who you are? Put another way, what seems to be more important—having connections from the outset, or being charismatic enough to enlist people as needed? How do people find worthwhile connections?

Another question: How do entrepreneurs avoid "dead ends" in terms of carrying out their vision? (How do they know what to do and when to alter their plans if necessary?) What do they do to keep their organizations afloat and expanding?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Tue, 16 Jan 2007 01:43:18 +0000 ryean 5736 Um, how about we ask him what are some of the strategies that he'd seen working pretty well in social entrepreneurship. I think he talks a lot about traits and characteristics (i only read a few chapters) of social entrepreneurs, but what are some strategies or methods of doing things that he'd seen that reveals these traits and characteristics and are successful.

]]> Questions Fri, 12 Jan 2007 06:16:28 +0000 dilithium 6299 I'm wondering whether Bornstein knows anything about the selection process that the Ashoka foundation uses to determine its fellows. What are the common traits? What made those people successful in their social entrepreneurial undertaking compared to other people who are perhaps, just as passionate?

Second off the topic question for Bornstein: since he learned so much about many different leaders, what made him decide to write a book than to say, perhaps, make a documentary of those people in action?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Thu, 11 Jan 2007 07:59:56 +0000 kalvin 5847 Both by this book and other things I've read (e.g. on the Grameen Bank) I'm struck by how it takes so little funding, relatively, to produce such amazing returns (assuming human happiness has some kind of market value… oh wait, it doesn't). I wonder if David feels that the Ashoka (Ashoka-McKinsey in the article— has the name changed?) Foundation, and other groups like it, has a bottleneck in its funding ability, and if so, how great of one? Are there millions of Fabio Rosas out there just waiting for more funding and support, or is Fabio Rosa rather unique? And if it's the former (of course) does he think that ideally, money that currently goes to less innovative charitable causes should be going to fund people like Fabio?

]]> Re: Questions and stuff Thu, 11 Jan 2007 07:55:53 +0000 kalvin 5847 Hey, someone asked exactly this question of Paul Farmer ( when he came to speak a couple months ago, except she asked "since there are so many NGOs already"

Paul Farmer's response was (if I remember correctly…) that he does feel like there are way too many NGOs (he cited some ridiculously large number in a certain African country), many of which aren't very effective, and perhaps it would be more effective for some of them to combine forces. On the other hand, people should do what you feel a passion for, and if that requires starting a new organization, then so be it.

]]> Questions and stuff Sat, 06 Jan 2007 05:33:55 +0000 5730 In social entrepreneurship, since there are so many groups and movements, how exactly does one know when to start something new, rather than join what already exists? A lot of the examples I've read seem to be people who founded their own companies, organizations, teams, etc., but what if something that is pretty solid already exists?

I feel like some of the fun of social entrepreneurship for people who aren't the founders/leaders is something of a bandwagon effect. How do the founders/leaders effectively take advantage of it to use their strength of numbers? For instance, I know the ONE organization sends out news through e-mail, keeps its website very well organized, and does novel things like have artists come up with songs about the issues, as well as standard requests like asking its members to write letters to their representatives. Thousands upon thousands of e-mails flood capital hill this way. I've written several myself. What is it that keeps members coming, interested, and supporting?