POTRER, M. E. (2008). Strategy for Social Enterprises. In: HBSCNY Social Enterprise Summit. Boston, 23 September 2008. Boston: Harvard Business School. 원문보기

자료정리: 김예영

Flawed Concepts of Strategy

Strategy as aspiration

“Our strategy is to have one million visitors…”

“…double our endowment…”

“…grow revenue…”

Strategy as action

“Our strategy is to expand the collection…”

“… build a new building…”

“… mount ten special exhibitions per year…”

Strategy as vision / mission

“Our strategy is to serve the homeless…”

“…to close the education gap…”


Mission Statements: Selected Museums

Guggenheim Museum, New York

The mission of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation is to promote understanding and appreciation of art, architecture, and other manifestations of modern and contemporary visual culture; to collect, preserve, and research art objects; and to make them accessible to scholars and an increasingly diverse audience through its network of museums, programs, educational initiatives, and publications.

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

The mission of The Metropolitan Museum of Art is to collect, preserve, study, exhibit, and stimulate appreciation for and advance knowledge of works of art that collectively represent the broadest spectrum of human achievement at the highest level of quality, all in the service of the public and in accordance with the highest professional standards.

American Museum of Natural History, New York

To discover, interpret, and disseminate – through scientific research and education – knowledge about human cultures, the natural world, and the universe.

Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

The Smithsonian is committed to enlarging our shared understanding of the mosaic that is our national identity by providing authoritative that us to our history and our experiences connect heritage as Americans and to promoting innovation, research and discovery in science.


Setting the Right Goals: For-Profit Corporations

  • Good strategy for any organization starts with defining appropriate goals

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  • The fundamental goal of a for-profit company is superior longterm return on investment
  • Growth is good only if superiority in ROIC is achieved and sustained
  • Profitability must be measured realistically, capturing the actual profit compared for each business to the full investment

The Goals of Social Enterprise

  • The fundamental purpose of a social enterprise or any other organization is value creation

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  • For social enterprises, there are often multiple social benefits, which can lead to multiple goals
  • Measuring full costs is essential to insure that true value is being created

– Cost on a per recipient basis should always be estimated


Defining Social Benefits: Considerations

  • Costs avoided by society
  • Intrinsic value of the social service
  • Filling gaps left by government or business
  • Uniqueness of service versus other institutions
  • Cost of achieving the service versus alternative means
  • Willingness to pay by users, government, or other organizations

  • But, donor / funder interest per se is a dangerous indicator of social Benefit

Measuring Costs of Delivery

  • Many social enterprises do a poor job of understanding the costs of delivering each type of social benefit

  • Benefits are not compared to the true costs

– Is there real value being created?

  • Social benefits are not delivered efficiently
  • A balanced budget does not mean that social value has been Created

Five Tests of a Good Strategy

  • A unique value proposition compared to other organizations
  • A different, tailored value chain
  • Clear tradeoffs, and choosing what not to do
  • Activities that fit together and reinforce each other
  • Continuity of strategy with continual improvement in Realization

Continuity of Strategy

  • Allows the board and the staff to understand and embrace the strategy
  • Builds truly unique skills and assets related to the strategy
  • Establishes a clear identity with patrons, funders, and other outside entities
  • Strengthens alignment of activities across the value chain

  • Successful organizations continuously improve in realizing their strategy
  • Reinvention and frequent shifts in direction are costly and confuse everyone

Barriers to Strategy in Social Enterprises

  • Tactical problems consume managerial attention
  • Multiple, conflicting, or unclear goals
  • Lack of board consensus on goals
  • No agreement on measuring performance
  • Poor cost information at the activity, program, and per recipient levels
  • Funding model leads to program proliferation or short-term focus
  • Legacy attitudes, activities, and facilities severely constrain future direction
  • Inability to make tradeoffs

  • Severe risk of agenda / program proliferation
  • Funding drives strategy instead of strategy driving funding

The Role of Leaders in Strategy

  • Lead the process of choosing the organization’s unique position

– The choice of strategy cannot be entirely democratic

  • Clearly distinguish strategy from operational effectiveness
  • Communicate the strategy relentlessly to all constituencies
  • Maintain discipline around the strategy, in the face of many distractions.
  • Decide which changes, technologies, and customer trends to respond to, and how the response can be tailored to the organization’s unique position
  • Measure value and progress against the strategy rigorously

  • Commitment to strategy is tested every day, especially in non-profit organizations