ENTR202 Social Entrepreneurship – Assignment 1
Empowering Women Through Social Entrepreneurship: Case Study of a Women’s Cooperative in India
Introduction
In the article written by Punita Bhatt Datta and Robert Gailey, researchers have discussed a business cooperative model. Researchers have studied the model and explained the empowerment of women through social entrepreneurship. The article sheds light on how the business cooperative Lijjat has gained success and sustainability. Four questions have helped explore the case further, and different useful concepts and ideas prove to be a source of learning (Datta & Gailey, 2012). Social ventures and their attributes can help to make changes in society, and Lijjat is an example worth following. Social entrepreneurship can be possible through social enterprises, and the cooperative business model can be a viable way to move forward.
1-dentify the different stakeholders of Lijjat. How are the interests of each served? What does each of these stakeholders gain from Lijjat’s activities? Do you think their respective interests are well served?
Lijjat follows a cooperative business model and, like a typical business, has stakeholders like employers, employees, government, society, and customers. Research finds that any business activity has these stakeholders in its center. However, specific to Lijjat women participating as owners of the business and their families are the most prominent stakeholders. All of these stakeholders serve the interests of each other because everyone takes the benefits of business activity. Women as employers earn their profit because the cooperative business sells products to society. It has a substantial number of customers buying products of the cooperative. From papad to soap and detergents, the organization has satisfied various needs of customers. It goes to serve their benefits directly because the right product fulfills the needs of customers. The overseas success of the business’ products also indicates that its products are offering superior customer value. Along with these benefits, other stakeholders are also gaining positive outcomes (Calas et al., 2009).
Society as a whole gains from the women empowerment and increasing entrepreneurial activities from it. Lijjat’s activities offer plenty of opportunities and benefits to various stakeholders. The government also gets benefits because the cooperative business model of Lijjat has been empowering women. Serving the interests of each stakeholder are because of gains each stakeholder has been getting from each other’s activities. It shows that respective interests are well served, and it is in line with stakeholder theory as well. Each stakeholder serves its interests, but simultaneously, each stakeholder depends on the others. Lijjat cooperative business model has been tightly embedded in social collaboration. Even employers of the business have to coordinate and depend on each other. Therefore, they have to work to reach a win-win situation for every stakeholder (Kulik & Lawrence, 2017). Even employees who can have their jobs may keep their jobs if the business can sell its products to customers. Therefore, the cooperation of stakeholders is there at each level. The business model of the organization is aligned with stakeholders and their active cooperation.
2-Describe and explain the social venture sustainability model adopted by Lijjat, and identify its social value proposition (SVP). What social needs is Lijjat addressing? How effective is Lijjat in addressing these issues?
Lijjat is in the business for more than five decades, and it is a strong example of its sustainable existence. No doubt, it is a thriving social venture, and its social venture sustainability model also has some attributes that are promising. It has set up a cooperative where workers have value. It means that workers have to contribute to working on getting equal profit shared. It adds to the sustainability of the cooperative organization because it does not have a deficiency later in the model. The social value proposition of Lijjat is collective ownership and cooperation among owners (Lal, 2019). Women are working for the cooperative, and they collectively own the business. So, they raise their stakes in the cooperative, and their role raises the role in society. Therefore, Lijjat has been empowering women through this model, where every member of the business contributes towards one destination of collective ownership. The social venture sustainability model is suitable for the working of the organization as it considers social and economic priorities.
Lijjat has been addressing different social needs for its members and employees. First, it offers them job security that maintains the balance in society. Members do not have a fear of losing jobs. They are not highly literate women, but their collective approach has done things in their favor. They are getting social empowerment. Customers and society have options to have value against products. The scale and magnitude of Lijjat show that it has been addressing these issues effectively. It has become a billion rupees company and gives a handsome amount to its members. The upward social mobility due to Lijjat is benefiting the society as women are getting more say in society. They have a more powerful role in their communities and society. Collective ownership and cooperation have led to high social value for everyone involved in this cooperative model.
3-Why do you think Lijjat chose to adopt a cooperative business model? Identify how business skills have contributed to the effective operation and success of this social enterprise.
The beginning of Lijjat can help understand why it has chosen the cooperative business model. The case study states that it has not received any funding from the government, while many cooperatives get government funding. Women were not adequately skilled and literate those started the cooperative business; therefore, they found it a wise idea to pursue cooperative business. The cooperative business model could be a success because it did not have resources to start the business. It led to the contribution of skills in the business that brought effective operation (Audebrand et al., 2017). Workers had to do a specific duty, and they were compensated upon the accomplishment of their tasks. It was not a burden for any of the parties involved because workers get rewarded for the job done in the business. The sale of products brings revenues into the business that caused the sustainable flow of business operations. Therefore, the cooperative business model gave enough flexible and broader leverage to services.
As it is a social enterprise, it engages with its members. It is a fundamental attribute of any social enterprise that does not maintain distance among members. Everyone is an equal shareholder because it follows the principle of collective ownership (Selloni & Corubolo, 2017). However, effectiveness in operations in social enterprises is because of the contribution of each member based on her skills. It happened in Lijjat, where no member was not a burden, but contributed as per her effectiveness. The unity of command, along with decentralization, has resulted in success. Different branches and their decentralization have developed a chain that was flexible to invite contributions of all members. The success of the social enterprise has proved the success of a cooperative business model. The efficiency of operations brings better options in the social enterprise as it has occurred in the case of Lijjat (Mair & Schoen, 2007).
4-What opportunities, challenges, and issues has Lijjat faced, and continues to face? In respect of these factors, how do you see the future for the organisation?
Lijjat has exploited opportunities as the cooperative business has witnessed growth. It now has thousands of members and billions of rupees in turnover. It has established its foundations and now could grow at an unprecedented pace. Starting from papad and getting to soap and detergents shows plenty of opportunities present for the cooperative. However, some of its entrepreneurial startups have failed, as well. It is a challenge for the cooperative to grow and earn more money for its members. This challenge continues to be there before the cooperative in the future. Managing thousands of members and coordinating their skills and efforts was not a small or a straightforward thing to do. Such smart management has opened the door for opportunities for business. However, at this point, it needs to expand further so that its members can earn more. It has to offer employment as well, so that it can become a job offering organization. These challenges would keep surfacing before the business because the dynamic business environment would keep posing them.
In the context of the above picture, the future of the organization is outstanding. It has traveled a long journey for decades, and now, it has become a reality. It has been offering products to the market, and customers are buying it. It has an overseas customer base as well, which is a guarantee of success for any business. Challenges may come on the way to success in the future, but they can be handled because the business is earning profit. It has satisfied and devoted members that are working hard. The cooperative business model ensures their remuneration and profit as well. It is a salient feature of the cooperative business model that is flexible and accommodating (Royer, 2019). In light of these factors, Lijjat has a promising future ahead, and it should be ready to exploit opportunities on its way in the future. The successful business of the organization and favorable outcomes for society makes it an effective example.
Conclusion
The case and its answers conclude that the cooperative business model is workable and sustainable. Social ventures and social enterprises are flexible business entities that have a strong connection among members. They are equal shareholders and earn profit equally. Lijjat has achieved these milestones following a cooperative business model. The paper recommends promoting business cooperatives because they empower their members and make them economically independent. The case study has provided an example of how an organization can bring a change in society. Women’s empowerment through social enterprises is a nice idea that is workable as well.
References
Audebrand, L.K., Camus, A. & Michaud, V., 2017. A Mosquito in the Classroom: Using the Cooperative Business Model to Foster Paradoxical Thinking in Management Education. Journal of Management Education, 41(2), pp.216-48.
Calas, M., Smircich, L. & Bourne, K., 2009. xtending the boundaries: Reframing “entrepreneurship as social change” through feminist perspectives. Academy of Management Review, 34(3), pp.552-69.
Datta, P.B. & Gailey, R., 2012. Empowering Women Through Social Entrepreneurship: Case Study of a Women’s Cooperative in India. Entrepreneurship theory and Practice, 36(3), pp.569-87.
Kulik, B.W. & Lawrence, R., 2017. Cooperative Engagement Theory: Stakeholder Engagement as an Explanation of Hospital Medicare Charges. Journal of Management Policy and Practice, 18(2), pp.70-80.
Lal, T., 2019. Measuring impact of financial inclusion on rural development through cooperatives. International Journal of Social Economics, 46(3), pp.352-76.
Mair, J. & Schoen, O., 2007. Successful social entrepreneurial business models in the context of developing economies: An explorative study. International Journal of Emerging Markets, 2(1), pp.54-68.
Royer, J.S., 2019. Measuring the cost of capital in cooperative businesses. Agribusiness, 35(2), pp.249-64.
Selloni, D. & Corubolo, M., 2017. Design for Social Enterprises: How Design Thinking Can Support Social Innovation within Social Enterprises. The Design Journal, 20(6), pp.775-94.
