Social or commercial entrepreneurship?

I'm often intrigued as to how best to ascribe 'social' and 'commercial' entrepreneurship to organisations. Mostly, a big gulf which separates 'profit driven' and 'social value driven' so the differentials are plain to see. However, sometimes the dividing line is very fine, making it harder for people working inside such organisations (and stakeholders engaging with them from the outside) to distinguish between the two. As individuals join social entrepreneurial organisations to 'do good' and to 'contribute', this can be a little disconcerting.

I found Bright Simons' blog What makes Social Entrepreneurs Different therefore, very interesting and relevant.

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Panic and the absence of leadership

I often borrow a line commonly used in crime movies when I see yet another leadership organisation fall from grace: "You could have done this the easy way, but you chose to do it the hard way". Oxfam was a hitherto admired institution, having done impressive work around the world for more than 75 years, respected for its engagement with donors big and small, its courage in working in war- and disaster-torn regions, and its commitment to equality and fairness. The Haiti scandal has rocked it to its core, putting into question its ability to continue its operations, as governments are rethinking funding levels, donors withdrawing sponsorship and customers pulling out of their shops. In other words, it is losing its licence to operate. There are so many lessons that can be learned from brands which fail to protect their culture, vision and reputation. United Airlines CEO's response to the treatment of one of its passengers on a flight, Bell Pottinger's colla

Authenticity and public gaffs

Tari's LinkedIn post 8 November 2018 Interesting that in this otherwise fascinating article, the word 'authenticity' only came up once. If you're a boss of any sort (politics or business), your first step should be to get in touch with your own authenticity and check how aligned this is with a) the organisation you lead or represent, b) expectations of your stakeholders, and c) the prevailing zeitgeist. Yes, presentation and avoiding-gaffs training can help but better still, get the thinking, the emotions and the behaviours right. The bonus is that you'll feel less nervous about making a gaff when out and about in public because you're not second-guessing what might constitute a gaff. There's a bonus in doing this: you get to lead your organisation better and your staff also get to live a culture of authenticity

Of leaders, lies and euphemisms

We can describe lying in as many ways as we like... I love Lucy Kellaway's FT columns, this one from February last year is a classic. I got to thinking about leaders and lies, and how lies are euphemistically described when Sir John Chilcot today described Tony Blair as "not straight with the nation" on the Iraq war when he was British Prime Minister. Sir Robert Armstrong, British Cabinet Secretary said during the 'Spycatcher' trial in 1986 that a book written by a former MI5 employee "...contains a misleading impression, not a lie. It was being economical with the truth.". More recently Kellyanne Conway introduced us to the notion of "alternative facts" http://bit.do/dySAA Is it no surprise therefore that Edelman's 2017 Trust barometer finds "that trust is in crisis around the world. The general population’s trust in all four key institutions — business, government, NGOs, and media — has declined broadly, a phenomenon not report

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