What is Corporate Social Responsibility? - InnoTrain CSR

What is Corporate Social Responsibility?
1.3. Social entrepreneurship and social business
In short
The goal of social entrepreneurs is to identify and implement innovative
entrepreneurial solutions for urgent social problems. The content and purpose
of the work as social business is strictly of non-profit nature; this is the key
difference compared to the profit orientation of traditional companies.
Learning targets
� Contrast differences, interfaces and potentials of CSR and social business
� Reflect the concept of social business and the social enterprise as perspective
for the professional development in the field of CSR
CSR learning contents
In the debate about Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), social entrepreneurs and
social business are regularly discussed as a related and partly competing concept.
CSR describes responsible corporate management as a profitable business model
and a secondary solution to a social problem. In contrast, the primary objective for
the social entrepreneur and the social business is in finding solutions for corporate,
ecological and social shortcomings.
Consequently, social business describes a corporate activity committed to achieving
a sustainable significant positive change in society through innovation and
pragmatism. Possible fields of action include education, environmental protection,
combating poverty or human rights. Because the idea of making a profit traditionally
takes a back seat in social business, the co-operation, donation, grant or incomebased
financing models are focusing on the respective social goals. The path to
generating income strongly depends on the fact whether paying customers, i.e. a
market exists for the topic-related concern.
Social business experienced an upward trend in the economic and (development)
policy-related agenda thanks to the peace Nobel price in 2007: Bangladeshi
economist Muhammad Yunus was awarded the price for his micro return system "to
the poorest of the poor". Since its foundation, the Grameen Bank (translated: Village
Bank) has been geared toward a population group which has been classified as not
credit-worthy by commercial credit institutions. Meanwhile, the Grameen Bank itself
has become one of the most successful banks on the continent and has grown with a
The project "InnoTrain CSR" is organized by GILDE GmbH and has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the
views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. 12/2010
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InnoTrain CSR
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