The Algorithm of Social Enterprise

Can social enterprise be brought down to an algorithm? And through that medium can it be proved to be sustainable? That’s what Jeff Trexler of Pace University, USA, looks at in his piece “Social Enterprise as an Algorithm: Is Social Enterprise Sustainable?”

Trexler begins his piece by taking a look some of the reasons for some of the inherent problems in understanding what a social enterprise is, and how the terms used are often quite contradictory. One reason is that there is poor understanding of organizational structures and mediums. In the beginning of his piece, he also takes a closer look at the term ‘sustainability’ and how it applies to social entrepreneurships. Trexler argues that the terms and ideas used to associate the industry –  for example, the notion that social enterprise is the first mode of organization to respect natural system ecologies – leads to a level of rhetoric about the sector, which might not be based in any principle.

To enable social enterprise to move beyond being the latest fad in doing good, Trexler puts the industry through an assessment of its links between system dynamics and social institutions.  The aim of his paper to this end is to:

• To offer a new definition of social enterprise, one that looks at delivers a concise explanation as well as explains the diverse values and ventures within the industry.  Trexler sets out to accomplish this through moving away from trying to identify a “prescriptive mission or an array of common characteristics.”
• He also aims to provide an explanation for the social enterprise sector’s organizational altruism that goes beyond it being a social fad. Trexler argues that social enterprise is not so much of a disruptive innovation as it is viewed. Rather, it works on the recurring tendency of those engaged in charity to adopt traits of potential supporters, which in themselves are sustainable.
• Lastly his article sets out to explain why social enterprise is transitional. His view is that social enterprise is a particular organizational technology, and that every enterprise is a social enterprise. This he says flows from the very nature of corporate identity, and not from ethical imperatives.

Trexler provides some compelling reasoning to the notions of social enterprise. Most interesting is the point he keeps reiterating, that social enterprise is transitional, that its greatest contribution would be to remind the world of what corporate identity is. That there should not be a distinction between “social” businesses or non-profit/for-profit businesses. His argument for his is that the distinction slots social enterprise as a niche sector, inherently assuming a conceptual divide between social and business values.

Read Trexler’s entire article here.