About Us: Messages from the Directors

Filipe Santos
Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship
Academic Director, Social Entrepreneurship Programme
Social entrepreneurship is the happy marriage of an entrepreneurial spirit with a social mission!

Being a social entrepreneur means:
 
Addressing Deep Societal Problems
by
Empowering People
through
Self-Sustaining Organizations
that
Challenge Conventional Wisdom
using
Innovative Business Models
deployed in
Local Actions
achieving
Multiplier Impact in People’s Lives
therefore
Making the World a Better Place

INSEAD, itself an entrepreneurial organization, is keen to contribute to this growing field by educating  the next generation of social entrepreneurial leaders and developing the knowledge and management frameworks that will enable them to achieve an extraordinary social impact.

We are grateful to our partner organizations, friends and alumni for supporting this initiative, enriching our programmes, and nurturing a vibrant eco-system of ideas and mentoring.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Christine Driscoll
Associate Director, Social Entrepreneurship Initiative

This year, we are happy to announce the launch of the INSEAD Social Entrepreneurship Catalyst. In my role as Associate Director of the Social Entrepreneurship Initiative, I will be heading up the Catalyst and tying in individuals from our vast and impressive network, including current MBAs, faculty, alumni, participants of our ISEP program, and partners. In launching the Catalyst, the goals are to make INSEAD the most attractive business school for MBA students who are passionate about social entrepreneurship and to create a central, thriving network linking current MBAs with INSEAD alumni and other industry players involved in social entrepreneurship. Through an integrated sequence of events and workshops, networking opportunities, and projects that will engage MBA students from the start of the programme at INSEAD, we hope that the Catalyst will allow students to understand social entrepreneurship, expand their potential for impact, and act effectively on their social entrepreneurship interests and passions. This program will be seamlessly integrated into the formal MBA curricula of courses and events. Please contact me for more information (christine.driscoll@insead.edu).

Hans H. Wahl
Director INSEAD Social Entrepreneurship Programme (ISEP)

INSEAD and Social Entrepreneurship

Behind this web site is a thriving network creating dynamic change in communities around the world, a rich leading-edge educational programme and an expanding body of research. This site is designed to provide access to those resources, link those involved to each other and inspire innovation as challenges ideas and solutions are shared across this platform. This past year, the programme’s flagship executive education programmes, ISEP, has completed its fourth very successful, year. Now with programmes in both Fontainebleau and Singapore, participants from 36 countries and network members in nearly 50 on five continents, it has truly become a global in its reach.

The programme continues to draw some of the world’s leading social entrepreneurs for an intensive week designed to deliver high-level business management and strategy tools. The alumni of years programmes have established a vibrant community which carries on the collaboration that started when they participated at ISEP.

ISEP itself is complemented by a variety of courses, research, and alumni initiatives that reflect INSEAD’s commitment to social entrepreneurship as a powerful tool addressing the compelling social needs that face our communities and the world today. An innovative “International Development Field Project” elective for INSEAD’s MBAs brings the high-level business skills of our students with the real-world business challenges faced by our social entrepreneurs. Custom programmes are being developed with partner organisations, including several venture philanthropy firms to bring the growing body of research and analytical tools to practitioners both in Europe and around the world.

It is also housed within INSEAD’s Social Innovation Centre that serves as a home for work on critical issues including health, ethics, humanitarian assistance, sustainable business practices, ethics and corporate social responsibility, the environment and a targeted initiative on Africa.

This website will continue to serve as a platform to present the work of INSEAD, our alumni, and our partners. Over the coming weeks and months, new features and content will be added that will allow for greater interaction, exchange and collaboration. Meanwhile, we look forward to your comments, your ideas and your suggestions to make this a more effective vehicle for promoting social entrepreneurship.