TOPIC 2

IDEAS AND OPPORTUNITIES

Case Study 1:
Martha Rollins –
Boaz & Ruth

Founder and CEO Emeritus, Boaz & Ruth

Purpose Prize Winner 2006
Martha Rollins’ Story
Martha Rollins was a successful entrepreneur in Richmond, Virginia
having started and operated Martha’s Mixtures, Ltd., an antique and
refinishing business.

In 2001, she created Boaz & Ruth to help some of the 200 people
released from prison each week in the Richmond area, spur commercial
rehabilitation in a crime-ridden neighborhood, and form healing cross-
cultural bridges in the racially divided city.
 • A high crime, predatory
RICHMOND district

• Available labor to
Martha revitalize the
neighborhood.

This is an example of how social entrepreneurs recognize

opportunity.
 44 ex-offenders
REHABILITATION OF A PRISONER

42 had prior
substance Computer training courses
abuse GED Coaching
problems
50 who entered Period of study: 1 year, 50 hours
per week (classes, work and
48 no driving counseling)
license

22 found fulltime jobs

44 no
computer skills 5 reincarnated
Martha’s contributions:
1) Provides life/work skills and re-entry assistance for released prisoners.
2) Foster commercial revitalization for the troubled community of
Highland Park.
3) Bridges culturally and economically within the Richmond
metropolitan area.

Results: Helped lower criminal rates in the area.

Received national recognition
including an invitation to the
White House for an event
recognizing social entrepreneurs
who pursue innovative solutions to
serious social issues.
 THE CREATIVE PROCESS OF SOCIAL
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
A potential social entrepreneur sees a social problem or
unmet needs as an opportunity for action.

Opportunity recognition is part of converting an idea to a

means of creating social value.

What is needed to recognize opportunities?

• Background: knowledge of unmet needs
• Creativity to generate ideas
• Creativity to convert them to opportunities
How can we convert the process in Boaz and Ruth?
 Background: Knowledge of Unmet Needs

Highland Park is in the center with the most number of returning folks from prison and jail.
Challenges to develop a formal re-entry program to help individuals rebalance their
lives.

Creativity to generate ideas

Rebuilding lives, communicates through relationships, training, transitional jobs and

economic revitalization.

Creativity to convert them to opportunities

Men and women doing hard work of personal change the community around them.
Generating ideas is predicated on having a proper background.

In general, we can break background into two parts: access to

information and utilization of information.

Education

Life experience Stocks of knowledge Intelligence and alertness

Work experience

ACCESS TO INFORMATION Networks UTILIZATION OF INFORMATION

Access to information Utilization of information

Creative process of ideas and opportunities

Access to information

Education
• E.g., this textbook

Work experience
• Industry- and job-specific skills

• Life experience
• Informal learning and personal history

• Social networks
• Friends, community, family
Utilization of information

Knowledge stocks
• Assembling what you know from different sources

Intelligence and alertness

• Using practical and emotional intelligence in recognizing
opportunities
 CREATIVITY
Generating ideas to improve the effectiveness of a systems, starts with
ideas and culminates in opportunities.

Ideas can be adaptive or innovative.

Adaptive is using existing resources – reconfigured and reestablished the

old program.

Innovations redefine problems in pursuit of superior solutions – and are

less predictable
innovation adaptation

invention synthesis extension

Continuum of SE concepts
Invention Synthesis Extension
A completely Combining Adapting
new service new and existing
or product existing resources
 IDEAS
There are techniques for idea generation that most successful social
entrepreneurs regularly use.

Brainstorming – numerous ideas in a short period of time

Focus groups – find out what actual potential consumers might actually
want

Surveys – broader / better representation of the target population

 MOVING FROM IDEAS TO OPPORTUNITIES
The move from ideas to opportunities is essentially a move from supply
and demand.

Is there a match between a social entrepreneur’s idea and a need?

According to Maslow, people address their needs in order from the

most basic physiological needs to higher order needs.

Social entrepreneurs can recognize when lower level needs have

not been met.
 self-transcendence Programs to create mentors

self-actualization College scholarships

aesthetic The arts

cognitive Academic programs

self-esteem Empowerment programs

belongingess Community programs

safety and security School and neighborhood safety

physiological Proper nutrition

Maslow’s hierarchy Example programs that meet

different needs

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and examples of social entrepreneurship potential

Sources of opportunities
Technological change
• Using the internet for political fundraising

Change in public policy

• New opportunities for faith-based groups

Changes in public opinion

• Opposition to wars (Vietnam and Iraq)

Changes in tastes
• E.g., higher education adapts to student interests

Social and Demographic changes

• Serve immigrants and help them assimilate