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About the content
How do we create innovative and effective solutions to social problems around the world ? This course was designed for individuals and organizations who want to identify and bring about transformative societal change. Professors Jim Thompson and Ian “Mac” MacMillan help you develop both a strategy and a framework for your social enterprise based on their years of experience and expertise teaching social entrepreneurship and advising entrepreneurs. You’ll learn how to define a social problem, understand contextual realities, develop a solution, and plan for effective deployment. By the end of this course, you’ll have a deep understanding of the realities of launching an enterprise, be prepared for every step of the process, and put your social entrepreneurial venture on the path to success.
Syllabus
Week 1 - What is Social Enterprise?
Topics
- Introduction & Course Overview
- Social Enterprise Planning
- Design Thinking for Social Innovation
Homework
- Mind Map
- Problem/Solution Statement
- Logistics Quiz
Week 2 - Deciding Who to Help and How
Topics
- Performance Criteria
- Segmentation
- Introduction to Logic Models
- How to Build a Logic Model
Homework
- Performance Criteria: Unit of Revenue & Unit of Social Impact
- Segmentation: Market Segments
- Logic Model
Week 3 - Understanding Your Beneficiaries and their Alternatives
Topics
- Understanding the Beneficiary
- Operations Realities
- Operations Requirements
- Competitive Analysis
Homework
- Beneficiary Experience Table
- Deliverables Table
- Competitive Analysis Matrix
Week 4 - Testing Assumptions and Measuring Performance
Topics
- Test of Concept Plausibility
- Performance Measurement
- Framing and Scoping
- Cost Table
Homework
- Test of Concept Plausibility
- Framing and Scoping (Social Impact & Financial Goals)
- Cost Table
Week 5 - Organizational Form and Stakeholder Management
Topics
- Perspective on Organizational Form: I
- Perspective on Organizational Form: II
- Stakeholder Analysis
- Sociopolitics
- Summary & Next Steps
Homework
- Organizational Form
- Stakeholder Analysis
Instructors
James D. Thompson
Director, Wharton Social Entrepreneurship Program
Entrepreneurship
Ian "Mac" MacMillan
Dhirubhai Ambani Professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Management
Content Designer
The University of Pennsylvania (commonly known as Penn), founded in 1740, is a private university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. A member of the Ivy League, Penn is the fourth oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and considers itself the first university in the United States to offer both undergraduate and graduate degrees.
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Coursera is a digital company offering massive open online course founded by computer teachers Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller Stanford University, located in Mountain View, California.
Coursera works with top universities and organizations to make some of their courses available online, and offers courses in many subjects, including: physics, engineering, humanities, medicine, biology, social sciences, mathematics, business, computer science, digital marketing, data science, and other subjects.
