Tools of the Trade

For social entrepreneurs, the key to success is generally three things:
1) an understanding of the community or environment in which they can make a change
2) the knowledge and expertise to run an organization that can make that change
3) a strong network of connections that can help them link to the important players in their communities and markets

The challenge, then, is to bring all these things together at once. Understanding their individual contributions to the success of an social venture is even more difficult: how, and when, these pieces will fit into the puzzle of the organization is impossible to know. The gambles an entrepreneur must take to get his or her company off the ground are no less challenging when they are taken in pursuit of social good, rather than capital good.