Better together? Social enterprises want to be partners with corporates

Hong Kong is abuzz with all things social enterprise. This month we have seen the Social Enterprise Summit (now in its seventh year), UnLTD's Hong Kong Jam, and CityU's Project Flame Symposium bring together the latest ideas with the budding social entrepreneurs of the future.

Government, philanthropists, charities, and educational institutes have been increasing their efforts in this space year on year in the hope that social enterprise provides the sustainable and commercially viable answer to solving society’s problems. More and more corporations are lending their support in this space, but the overall number of corporate supporters is still relatively small.

Why aren't more companies jumping on the social enterprise bandwagon?

Firstly, it's difficult for companies to know where to start finding social enterprises to work with, particularly when there is no legal definition in Hong Kong. Without knowing the business model and social mission behind, some companies discount many for-profit social enterprises.

Additionally, there is a lack of clarity on how business can help social enterprises. Each social enterprise differs so vastly from the next that finding a match can be daunting.

On the other hand, busy social entrepreneurs do not have the time to enlist the kind of support a corporate has to give. With so many variables, corporations might be forgiven for sticking with what they know: donating to charities and procuring from the standard list of contractors.

Socially Responsible Procurement

Despite this complexity, some companies are truly integrative with their approach to corporate social responsibility, through launching 'responsible procurement'. Mandarin Oriental, for example, purchases socially responsible gifts for their guests from social enterprise The Mustard Seed Workshop.

By sourcing from The Mustard Seed Workshop, Mandarin Oriental helps to provide steady income to people from disadvantaged communities across Asia. They walk the talk when it comes to social commitment and customers reward a brand that lives its values.

Capacity Building

Another company heralded for its innovative work with social enterprises is Hong Kong Broadband Network. They won an Outstanding Corporate Citizenship Award for their 'Knowledge Volunteers' programme, providing four hours of senior manager time per month to share business expertise with six selected social enterprises.

They also clinched a further 13 awards for their partnership with iEnterprise to outsource their 1083 customer service hotline. iEnterprise employs underprivileged staff who suffer from disability or illness and are supported in recruitment, training, and monitoring by Hong Kong Broadband Network employees.

Moreover, their sponsorship and marketing around ethical consumption educates millions of people on how to 'make Hong Kong a better place to live' and positively impacts their brand. 

For companies who want to get involved, there is more than enough opportunity to support. With nearly 500 social enterprises of all shapes and sizes in Hong Kong, not-for-profits and for-profits, covering all sorts of trades, your next catering or cleaning provider could easily be one.

The variety is huge, but the unifying theme is the social purpose at the business' core.  If companies support social enterprise, they too share in the socially responsible purpose and make an impact in the community. 

Jumping on the social enterprise bandwagon, the quick start points could be financial support, capacity building, and supply chain integration. What is needed to make both sides sustainable is a strategic approach along with a little bit of imagination and a healthy amount of commitment to involve and partner with a social enterprise so that you both equally benefit from the relationship.

Social enterprises want to be seen as business partners to corporates. It's only a matter of time before they truly are.