Increasingly, mission driven organizations are exploring alternate market driven approaches to enhance their social impact. As social entrepreneurs ponder these fresh approaches, they have also been exploring a number of alternative organizational structures beyond the traditional non-profit structure. On March 7, 2011, we invited a number of these organizations to share their experiences and the innovative structures that they have choosen for their social enterprises, from a low-profit limited liability company (“L3C”), to a cooperative, to a corporation and finally, the traditional non-profit
structure.

This was yet another in the monthly series of networking events being jointly sponsored by TIE Social Entrepreneurs Group, NetSAP Boston and Tantric India Bistro to help promote Boston’s social entrepreneurs. We invited Nina Andersson, a corporate partner at  the international law firm of Brown Rudnick Berlack Israels LLP to moderate a discussion among the following representatives from a cooperative, a corporation, a L3C and a nonprofit:

Daniel Fireside, Equal Exchange (co-op) http://www.equalexchange.coop/

Equal Exchange's mission is to build long-term trade partnerships that are economically just and environmentally sound, to foster mutually beneficial relationships between farmers and consumers and to demonstrate, through its success, the contribution of worker co-operatives and Fair Trade to a more equitable, democratic and sustainable world.

Sidd Goyal, Assured Labor (corporation) http://www.assuredlabor.com/

Assured Labor’s innovative service is optimized for the way people in emerging markets really find jobs.

Ted Barber,Prosperity Candle (L3C)  http://prosperitycandle.com/
Prosperity Candle's mission is to build long-term partnerships with women entrepreneurs living in places torn by conflict. Prosperity Candle works with determined individuals who seek to rebuild their lives, provide for their families, and achieve security and well being through self-reliance.

Ram Raju , VisionAID (non profit) http://visionaid.org/

VisionAID  is working towards the creation of a large network of vision rehabilitation centers in under-served areas of India by 2020 (in alignment with the WHO Vision 2020 initiative). These centers offer  high quality vision rehabilitation services on a non profitable and charitable basis, to help visually impaired people reach their fullest potential.

Interspersed by questions from the attendees, the panelists spoke knowledgeably about the missions of their organizations and why they choose a particular organizational structure.  Ted Barber of Prosperity Candle and Daniel Fireside also addressed the challenges their organizations have faced in explaining the coop and L3C structures.  Sidd Goyal of Assured Labor commented on the challenges a company with a social mission faces when fundraising from investors . Ram Raju spoke insightfully about the opportunities that the non profit structure has afforded VisionAID.

As one attendee of this event noted, “so many interesting people and ideas flying around - Both from the panelists and the people I met.”

The purpose of these monthly events is to help create a networking hub for greater Boston where social entrepreneurs can meet and exchange ideas and connections with others who are interested in social impact. This is a regular monthly feature at Tantric India Bistro on the First Monday of the month under the joint sponsorship of Mary Sen, proprietor of the Tantric India Bistro, The TIE Boston Social Entrepreneurs Group and NETSAP Boston.

The net monthly meeting will be on Monday, March 7.  It will be from 6.30 pm onwards and the topic will be "Leveraging Competitions to Launch Your Social Enterprise"  For more information, visit:
http://www.meetup.com/Social-Entrepreneurs-Group-Boston/

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