Product details

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Subject category: Entrepreneurship
Published by: INSEAD
Originally published in: 2006
Version: 04.2014

Abstract

This is the second of a two-case series. ENVIE (New Enterprise for Economic Integration) and ACTIF (in French, 'actif' means both 'active' and 'employed') are two French social enterprises that aim to create employment opportunities for long term unemployed people through refurbishing and selling used goods. Both organisations are regarded as successes in their field, as both their economic and social performances are superior to the averages of other organisations in the field, yet ENVIE scaled much further than ACTIF. The case series describes how they were founded as well as how each of them grew from one local site to a national network. Their respective scale-up strategies are illustrated at length, emphasising how each of them: (1) designed a new organisational structure; (2) selected new sites; (3) hired new site entrepreneurs; (4) raised start-up funds; (5) developed partnerships; and (5) built systems and capacity. The case series' major purpose is to help students understand the managerial challenges of scaling up a social enterprise. When it comes to replicating an activity from one initial site to other geographical locations, a social entrepreneur can chose different strategies. In presenting two different strategies, the case series allows students to contrast the different approaches and to understand what the key success factors of the scaling efforts are.
Location:
Size:
Revenues in 2004 - ENVIE EUR21 million, ACTIF EUR2.5 million
Other setting(s):
1985-2005

About

Abstract

This is the second of a two-case series. ENVIE (New Enterprise for Economic Integration) and ACTIF (in French, 'actif' means both 'active' and 'employed') are two French social enterprises that aim to create employment opportunities for long term unemployed people through refurbishing and selling used goods. Both organisations are regarded as successes in their field, as both their economic and social performances are superior to the averages of other organisations in the field, yet ENVIE scaled much further than ACTIF. The case series describes how they were founded as well as how each of them grew from one local site to a national network. Their respective scale-up strategies are illustrated at length, emphasising how each of them: (1) designed a new organisational structure; (2) selected new sites; (3) hired new site entrepreneurs; (4) raised start-up funds; (5) developed partnerships; and (5) built systems and capacity. The case series' major purpose is to help students understand the managerial challenges of scaling up a social enterprise. When it comes to replicating an activity from one initial site to other geographical locations, a social entrepreneur can chose different strategies. In presenting two different strategies, the case series allows students to contrast the different approaches and to understand what the key success factors of the scaling efforts are.

Settings

Location:
Size:
Revenues in 2004 - ENVIE EUR21 million, ACTIF EUR2.5 million
Other setting(s):
1985-2005

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