3. Expand support for female social entrepreneurs beyond individual organizations and programmatic support
4. Conduct further research on how female social entrepreneurs are redefining social impact
“There is a massive gap for skills as
“When we talk about impact and
a convener, catalyst and a
vision, success should be thought of
partnership broker. When we all
as going beyond the organization
are speaking different languages
alone. When things really change,
and have different agendas, you have to bring
we shouldn’t need one main organization
those all together under a shared vision. We
anymore.”
have to co-create something that really wasn't there before." j a n e t l o n g m o r e , f o u n d e r o f d i g i ta l o p p o r t u n i t y t r u s t
i n n a h u daya , f o u n d e r o f s a m s a r a
In the course of our investigation, we began to see commonalities in how female social entrepreneurs lead
A number of female social entrepreneurs interviewed
and innovate, as presented in this report. However, our
for this research pointed out that there is a gap in skills
intention is not to over-simplify social entrepreneurship
and support for organizations that build movements
along gender lines. We recognize that further research
and catalyze collaborations. This is consistent with a
is needed to fully represent the diversity and richness of
Bridgespan study which found low philanthropic support
female social entrepreneurs’ leadership behaviors and
for formal collaboration, including coalitions, joint
innovation patterns.
programs, shared support functions, and mergers.
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By enabling and supporting collaborations that address
In particular, research institutions and social
interconnected systemic challenges, as demonstrated in
entrepreneurship networks can help expand views of
the cases of Hasina Kharbhih tackling human trafficking
success, and in turn, help strengthen the support system
and Morgan Dixon tackling deep-seated racism, donors
for female social entrepreneurs, by delving into data
and investors can help accelerate the impact of female—
to explore topics such as metrics and frameworks for
and male—social entrepreneurs.
different impact models, leadership and innovation approaches, and the role of gender in the lifecycle of
In addition, when making early-stage investments in
social entrepreneurs.
particular, flexible support that consider the full spectrum of responsibilities female social entrepreneurs have can make a big difference, especially for those who are primary caregivers. It is not uncommon for female social entrepreneurs to use the personal stipend Ashoka provides to afford necessary caregiving support so that they can focus on their social mission with less guilt and financial burden. Not surprisingly, 92% of Ashoka Fellows reported that the unrestricted personal stipend Ashoka provides was key to allowing them to focus full-time on their idea.
How Women Social Entrepreneurs Lead and Innovate
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