Social entreprenuers, Strategic Service Vision

In July 2008 I particpated in the Harvard Business School's Social Enterprises Executive Education program Strategic Perspectives for Nonprofit Managers (SPNM). It was one of the best and most transforming weeks of my life.

Here are all of the links and topics for posts from SPNM:
Overview
Inspiration
Capacity
Leadership
Scale
Strategic Service Vision
Mission and Strategic Triangle - Legitamacy & Support / Organization / Mission
Value Chain
Market Research
Measuring Impact


Interesting assignment tonight. We had to write about a strategic issue we are facing within our organization. One page only (I used really small type and small margins). And we will work through the living groups issues Wednesday and Thursday afternoon. I will really interesting and I think really helpful to get insight from such a diverse and smart group. I think I speak for us all when I say Living Group 32 is the best!

I feel like I should be humming I wish I could go back to college from Avenue Q. I am really learning a lot and the professors are all really phenomenal. I am so glad that I am recording my thoughts and discussions from class via this blog. It is really helpful.

So it was a really long day of classes (4 of them) and I have only covered one so far...going to be a long night, since I am committed to capturing all of my thoughts on paper (well not really paper, but you know what I mean). You may be wondering what I will write about when I get back home. LOTS. I have raised a ton of questions, and I plan to work through with my staff and board and share what we come up with.

Our second class today centered on Strategic Service Vision. The case concerned a community based organization (that had arts programs -yeah). The founder of the organziation wanted to create a similar organization in every major city - goal of 100 in the United States.

This founder was an amazing man, charismatic, brilliant, visionary, and got things done. He took a simple idea (aren't the best ones always the simple ones) and built "a miracle" in the worst neighborhood in Pittsburgh.

If the definition of a social entreprenuer is (and Harvard Business School says this is the definition, so I won't argue) someone who achieves goals by managing opportunity without resources under his/her control - this guy in the case study is that definition!

The entreprenuerial way is to test then invest, experiment then replication, but first you have to know the stategic vision (target market, service concept, operating strategy, support systems - see yesterday's post).

Now I have to admit I got VERY passionate in class today about this program replicating across the country because I thought it shouldn't. The success and beauty of it was that it was so organic to its community. The services offered grew from local partnership. The founder was from the neighborhood. I didn't believe that they should GO into new communities and try to force organic growth (since you can't) and that they would be better off inspiring and training leaders who might be able to create their own model in a their own communities. Three things set me off on a passionate rant was that it was donor driven and not based on need - hey it's cool what you are doing want to come in and replicate it in this community instead of what does my community need and the straw that broke the camel's back was that they were taking planning money from local business to create these sites and there were organizations in the communities that were doing the work and these guys were taking the funding opportunity away! And, finally it was basically all about the founder and his ego - which the follow-up information on the case proved. (My living groups tells me I didn't embarass them - that they were actually proud - thank goodness).

This does circle back to the Playhouse and theatre. Being a leader in theatre, whether it is managment or artistic means that you accept a responsibility. You must get to know your local commmunity. You must be a participant in that community. You also have the responsibility to bring the national and global community home and explore how it relates and why it is important. Remember that question the other day...What is relevant - well this is step one in finding out. It will never be relevent if it doesn't grow organically from your community (local) needs or the national/global relationship to your community. It is not something that can be forced.