What could the future of jobs focused social enterprise look like in Australia?

This is the element that I get most excited and optimistic for "Social enterprises permanently integrated into the employment system, supporting those furthest from the labour market into work in social enterprises and then, in many cases into mainstream employment"

I’m glad you got this out here and not to the poor passenger you sat next to on the flight that just wanted to read their book. My thoughts- I want impact to be a bigger lever for finance and investment. Not a discretionary amount that is unlikely to influence any real decision. From a corporate perspective, if orgs are going to attract better investment terms if they have social outcomes, they will be more motivated than what a policy could do.  It also would offset any potential financial benefit that many get by taking things that could be done by WISE offshore. 

Love this Mark. I'm one of the idealists, but agree that it's only through practical idealism that we'll get anywhere. We need the north star of the big vision - an economy where we have the ends and means the right way around (business as a means to social value, rather than and end in itself) - and then we can take practical steps in the right direction. The beauty of the social enterprise model is that it integrates market mechanisms and social impact - it shows us how commercial logic and impact logic can coexist. In doing that it demonstrates what's possible. But, the market needs to be incentivised to move, which comes down to advocacy and policy. We know social procurement policy works (we're working hard to see change at national level) and we know the opportunities in the employment services system are real too. And we're seeing positive change across ST business members who are (slowly) shifting to embed social purpose in thoughtful ways. Let's keep up the collective advocacy as a sector and see how far we can get towards the north star ... (meet you for coffee in ten years to reflect?!)

As always I learn so much from listening to your views. I think we might get more done in the next ten years than you imagine or at least I hope so. Social enterprises are a global movement and when movements get momentum they can expand quite rapidly. I have a lot of faith in the younger generation who have purpose and social impact imbedded in their lives and way of thinking . When I want to feel good about the future of social enterprises I talk to young people. As with anything and you listed it, “follow the money.” As impact investment matures in Australia and it will, just slower than Europe and North America, then exponential growth opportunities will open up. I am now turning my head to how we help the impact investment market mature so all of those thoughts of yours can come true. How do we get impact investors with significant means to take the small first steps as most social enterprises are not looking for the large cheques just yet.

Twenty years ago, the social enterprise sector had a decision to make - to adopt a welfarist approach to social enterprise and align the concept with grant-dependent 'sheltered workshop'-type ventures outside the market economy - or to adopt a market-based approach to social enterprise as a means to empower individuals and groups inside the market economy. Predictably, the grant-dependent parts of the sector chose the grant-dependent path, which effectively marginalised the idea of social enterprise. Today, demand for values-driven, market-based ventures in mainstream markets has never been greater, but that demand will have to be met by a new values-driven, entrepreneurial sector. www.innovation200.org/projects/