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Institutional Voids and Business Model Innovation: How Grassroots Social Businesses Advance Deprived Communities in Emerging Economies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2021

Ana Colovic Open the ORCID record for Ana Colovic [Opens in a new window]  and
Marion Schruoffeneger
Ana Colovic*
Affiliation:
NEOMA Business School, France
Marion Schruoffeneger
Affiliation:
NEOMA Business School, France
*
Corresponding author: Ana Colovic ([email protected])
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Abstract

Despite the growing interest in social businesses, knowledge about and theorization of how these businesses change social and institutional conditions in emerging economies is scarce. This research investigates how an innovative social business model acts on institutional voids and creates social value for deprived communities. Building on insights from the literature and a longitudinal case study of a local, grassroots social business venture operating in Brazilian slums and shantytowns (favelas), we uncover and theorize eight mechanisms by which an innovative social business model brings about institutional change and creates social value. These mechanisms are: orchestrating local business networks, developing local business networks, upgrading and building cognitive capacity, legitimizing, assigning multiple roles, empowering, building a positive territorial identity (territorial de-stigmatization), and boundary spanning. Our findings have important implications for social entrepreneurs and organizations supporting social business ventures in transforming economies.

摘要

尽管人们对社会企业的兴趣日益浓厚，但有关这些企业如何改变新兴经济体的社会和制度条件方面的知识和理论却十分匮乏。本研究探讨了一种创新社会商业模式如何弥补制度缺失，并为贫困社区创造社会价值。基于相关文献和对在巴西贫民窟和棚户区经营的本土基层社会企业的纵向案例研究，我们揭示并推论出了创新社会企业模式所带来的制度改变与创造社会价值的八种机制。这些机制是：统筹地方商业网络，发展地方商业网络，提升和建设认知能力，合法化，分配多重角色，授权，建立积极的领土认同(领土去污名化)和跨边界。我们的研究发现对经济转型期的社会企业家和支持社会企业的组织具有重要意义。

Аннотация

Несмотря на растущий интерес к социальному предпринимательству, существует еще недостаточно научных знаний и теоретических обоснований того, каким образом эти предприятия меняют социальные и институциональные условия в странах с развивающейся экономикой. Данное исследование изучает, как инновационная модель социального предпринимательства действует на институциональный вакуум и создает социальные ценности для бедных сообществ. На основании научной литературы и долговременном тематическом исследовании местного социального предприятия, которое работает на низовом уровне в бразильских трущобах (фавелах), мы обнаруживаем и развиваем теоретические положения относительно восьми механизмов, с помощью которых инновационная модель социального бизнеса вызывает институциональные изменения и создает социальные ценности. Эти механизмы включают в себя: организацию местных деловых связей, развитие местных деловых связей, совершенствование и наращивание интеллектуального потенциала, легитимацию, распределение многообразных ролей, расширение прав и возможностей, создание положительной территориальной идентичности (территориальную де-стигматизацию) и преодоление ограничений. Наши результаты имеют важное значение для социальных предпринимателей и организаций, которые поддерживают социальное предпринимательство в странах с переходной экономикой.

Resumen

A pesar del interés creciente en negocios sociales, el conocimiento sobre estos y la teorización sobre cómo estos negocios cambian las condiciones sociales e institucionales en economías emergentes es escaso. Esta investigación estudia cómo un modelo de negocio social innovador actúa sobre los vacíos institucionales y crea valor social para las comunidades desfavorecidas. Con base en los aportes de la literatura y un estudio de caso longitudinal local de una iniciativa empresarial social popular que opera en los barrios marginales y chabolas (favelas), revelamos y teorizamos ocho mecanismos mediante los cuales un modelo de negocio social innovador provoca un cambio institucional y crea valor social. Estos mecanismos son: la organización de redes empresariales locales, el desarrollo de redes de negocios locales, mejoramiento y desarrollo de la capacidad cognitiva, legitimización, asignación de roles múltiples, empoderamiento, construcción de una identidad territorial positiva (desestigmatización territorial), y la expansión de límites. Nuestros hallazgos tienen implicaciones importantes para los emprendedores sociales y organizaciones que apoyan las empresas sociales en la transformación de las economías.

Keywords

Brazilbusiness model innovationemerging economyinstitutional voidssocial entrepreneurship巴西商业模式创新信息经济制度缺陷社会创业Бразилияинновации в сфере моделей предпринимательской деятельностиразвивающаяся экономикаинституциональный вакуумсоциальное предпринимательствоBrasilinnovación del modelo de negocioeconomía emergentevacíos institucionalesemprendimiento social
Type
Special Issue Article
Information
Management and Organization Review , Volume 17 , Special Issue 2: Business Model Innovation in Transforming Economies , May 2021 , pp. 314 - 343
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The International Association for Chinese Management Research

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Footnotes

ACCEPTED BY Guest Editors Oli Mihalache and Henk Volberda

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