esade

Block seminar: Social Entrepreneurship & Impact Investing. (2235.YR.014176.1)

General information

Type:

 OPT

Curs:

 1

Period:

 S semester

ECTS Credits:

 3 ECTS

Teaching Staff:

Group Teacher Department Language
Year 1 Lisa Hehenberger Dirección General y Estrategia ENG

Prerequisites

Social entrepreneurship is emerging at the intersection of three sectors: public, private and nonprofit. Continuous pressure on public budgets, demographic and societal changes, as well as emerging new social challenges, require new and innovative forms of organisation for the financing and delivery of benefits and services. Social entrepreneurship blurs the limits between sectors, and provides innovative solutions to social needs that are not adequately dealt with by public authorities, businesses or traditional non-profit organizations.

Social entrepreneurship is the overall phenomenon, and concretely, social entrepreneurs are the individuals that set up and manage social enterprises (that can exhibit any legal form), characterized by a primary social mission and a desire to compete in the market economy. Social enterprises lack stable funding, organisational capacity and access to partnerships to most effectively develop solutions, and turn them into sustainable and scalable business models. Impact Investing (and Venture Philanthropy) are investment approaches that seek a societal impact combined with different degrees of financial return - by investing in social enterprise. Impact investing uses innovative financing mechanisms, capacity building support and impact measurement and management.

This course is designed for a broad range of ESADE students including those who, during their professional careers, are considering a leadership position in a social enterprise; are interested in understanding the specifics of managing social enterprises; planning to serve as advisors, board members or volunteers; would like to work as impact investors, either at an independent fund, a bank or a corporation. The course is also interesting for students who want to leverage business to serve social transformation. "Social? is understood here in the broadest sense of benefitting society, including environmental improvements.

Previous Knowledge

The course strives to be eminently practical and applicable to a variety of contexts. For this reason we will analyze cases referring to different types of social enterprises and impact investors, in different sectors and continents, addressing varied challenges in various ways, and displaying the main challenges faced by social entrepreneurs in different development phases, as well as exploring the investment strategy and process of an impact investing fund. You are not required to have a background in finance to take the course, indeed the focus will be on the impact side rather than the financial side of impact investing.

Workload distribution

This course is practical in nature. The workload is adapted to fit the block seminar format. You will have a mix of individual and group work.
Students will be expected to do intensive preparation before and during the seminar individually and in groups, as well as to attend ALL classes. To prepare for each class, you should make use of the "study questions in preparation for class?, to encourage you to think through the main concepts, to prepare the class readings, and the exercise or the case for discussion. The course material will be a mix of practically-oriented readings, tools and frameworks, case studies, videos, etc.. We will make active use of the class Moodle to inform you about the latest developments, related webinars and events, and to engage in online debates and discussions.

Course Learning Objectives

The main goal of this course is to introduce and explore how social entrepreneurship can help find, implement and scale solutions to the major social challenges facing our society, and how impact investing can fund and support such solutions. The course aims to foster a positive attitude and affinity toward the possibility of becoming personally involved in a social enterprise or impact investing initiative in the future. We also explore how to generate social impact in any career path by applying the principles and practices acquired in the course. Hence participants will acquire the basic knowledge necessary to build and lead high performing initiatives which help generate economic and social values simultaneously, and are economically viable in the long term.
The course also places a strong focus on methodologies and skills. We will practice creativity and innovation skills, analytical skills, negotiation skills, group work, presentations... and become acquainted with the main innovation, start up and funding methodologies of the time. We will also sharpen our critical thinking ability and strive to develop our own opinions about controversial issues and question our own assumptions. Hence this course is also interesting and suitable for students who want to explore entrepreneurship or simply an alternative view to business and finance.
At the end of the course, students should:
1. Be familiar with the basic principles and practices of social entrepreneurship
2. Understand how social entrepreneurs develop businesses that have a positive social impact, but are also financially viable.
3. Grasp the concept of impact investment and how social entrepreneurship requires an appropriate type of funding.
4. Develop their competences in terms of defining an impact thesis and how to make investment selection based on that.
5. Consider how to generate social impact in any business situation.


CONTENT

1. First part

A first block will address the concept and practice of social entrepreneurship, and the three stages in the life of a social enterprise: start-up, scaling up, and growth/consolidation, as well as impact measurement, with practical exercises and case studies.

2. Second Part

2. A second block is dedicated to impact investing. We will define impact investing and discuss how it relates to social entrepreneurship. We will learn about different ways of setting up a fund, the components of an investment strategy, and how to implement an impactful investment process.

3. Guest speakers

During the seminar, we will welcome guest speakers either live or through online connection, or through videos and interviews that you can follow. Practitioners will share with students their own experiences as social entrepreneurs or impact investors, providing insights on possible career paths linked to this field, while offering an opportunity to engage with real cases and examples.

Methodology

Students will be expected to do intensive preparation before each session individually and in groups, as well as to attend ALL classes, since a high proportion of the learning is developed in class. To prepare for each class, you should make use of the "study questions in preparation for class?, to encourage you to think through the main concepts, to prepare the class readings, and the exercise or the case for discussion.

Many additional articles, videos and links will be posted on Moodle (ESADE's elearning platform) so please check it regularly for updates. The class specific YouTube channel will feature all the videos used in class and more videos that enhance your learning process. The slides used during the sessions will also be posted there. All assignments will be handed in on Moodle and I will provide you with feedback as soon as possible.

ASSESSMENT

ASSESSMENT BREAKDOWN

Description %
Group work 60
Individual work and Class participation 40

Assessment criteria

Assessment criteria
The grading will be a mix of an assessment of the quality of your group work and your individual performance in class and outside of class (case reports and any other assignments or exercises).
60% Group exercises
40% Individual work (class participation + case study responses)

As in other courses, the nature of this course does not lend itself to objective questions; generally there are no "right? or "wrong? answers. There are however, different levels of quality. Grading is a measure of performance (not effort).
This is a discussion course, so I encourage your active participation. Sharing your experience with the group will enrich all the participants and make the sessions more dynamic.
On Moodle, you will find instructions for the sessions, communications, bibliography, etc. Please look at it every day (considering this is a block seminar). Slides of the sessions will also be posted here, always AFTER the class.

This course puts emphasis on both individual and team work, and evaluation will match the spirit of social entrepreneurship promoted in the class. Hence collaboration is encouraged.
Each student will be assigned to a group (a separate document will be handed out in class and groups posted on Moodle) in order to carry out a couple of assignments. A peer evaluation will be conducted at the end of the course to make sure that all group members contributed fully to the work.

A ) Group exercises
This course does not have a final exam but is based on continuous assessment. Each group has to prepare two exercises, of increasing difficulty, reflecting the learning you acquire during the course.
B) Individual work
- B.1. Class participation. Every student will be expected to attend class, to come prepared, and to participate actively in the discussion (orally, through the chat, poll or other online devices). Before class, you should have read the assigned cases, readings, thought critically about the concepts they present and their application to the case or topic of the day, and be prepared to answer the assigned study questions. The best contributions are those that are relevant to the question at hand. They often build on or respond to the observations of others, make links to prior classes, or draw on materials and lessons from other courses. Debates and disagreements can be powerful opportunities for learning. You are encouraged to challenge the views of your classmates and the instructor - provided that you do it constructively and with civility.
- B.2. Case study responses. For each case we will discuss in class, you have to submit a short response to the case questions. As in other classes all cases require you to prepare carefully before class and participate fully in class. When analyzing a case, try to place yourself in the position of management and ask yourself what you would do and what decisions you would make based on the information provided.

Bibliography

There is no book for this course. Readings will be assigned to (almost) every session as well as cases to be prepared and discussed in class. Additional materials can be found on the course website or indicated by the professor upon request.

Timetable and sections

Group Teacher Department
Year 1 Lisa Hehenberger Dirección General y Estrategia

Timetable Year 1

From 2023/9/5 to 2023/9/9:
From Tuesday to Friday from 9:30 to 13:30.
Each Saturday from 9:30 to 14:30.
From Tuesday to Thursday from 14:30 to 17:30.