ESADE brings together international experts to celebrate entrepreneurship as a driver of social innovation
The Annual Conference of the ESADE Institute for Social Innovation is set to take place on 1st April 2014 in Barcelona. According to the Institute’s director, Ignasi Carreras, the event will focus on the role played by intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs as drivers of innovation and social impact. The goal of the conference, Mr. Carreras said, is to "strengthen the impact of social enterprises that are in the start-up phase or already established, as well as NGOs, responsible and social companies, and public administrations that are capable of becoming more entrepreneurial in order to further social causes". The conference will also stress the vital role played by intrapreneurship, a form of in-house entrepreneurship practised by enterprising employees with their employer’s support that fosters innovation and the development of new business models within companies.
Under the theme of "Organisations with a Social Impact: Fostering Intrapreneurship and Social Entrepreneurship", the conference will feature several international experts who have experienced social intrapreneurship at their companies. These experts will discuss the leadership processes that they have used to challenge the status quo and build a better future.
Pamela Hartigan, Director of the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at Oxford University’s Saïd Business School, will give a talk entitled "Social Entrepreneurship: Transformational or Palliative Movement?" Alexia Penent d’Izarn, Director of Nutrition and Service Development at the Danone Ecosystem Fund, will discuss her experiences in a talk entitled "Transforming Business Practices Through Inclusive Models and Partnerships: The Example of the Danone Ecosystem Fund".
At the conference, various activities and workshops will encourage debate on impact investing, sources of financing for social entrepreneurs, sustainable models for generating social value, and social networking for organisations with a social impact. Various success stories, including those of Siel Bleu and Ship2B, will also be presented. According to Mr. Carreras, the conference will promote "new systems of financing for social initiatives through impact-investing mechanisms that are gaining momentum in other important countries".
Mr. Carreras added: "The Annual Conference of the ESADE Institute for Social Innovation has become a meeting point where social leaders who operate in different sectors can address today’s most important social and environmental challenges. We foster the flow of knowledge and the sharing of experiences in entrepreneurship and social innovation." According to Mrs Hartigan, this event reflects "a massive worldwide movement that seeks to radically transform our market-based, consumerist societies. The current system – which enriches a few at the expense of the multitude and drains the planet’s precious resources – is in dire need of an overhaul. The model of the future will need to blend social innovation with financial sustainability."
The conference will begin with opening remarks by Ignasi Carreras and Alfons Sauquet, Dean of ESADE Business School.
7th Annual Conference of the ESADE Institute for Social Innovation
Date: Tuesday, 1st April 2014
Time: 9.00 am
Venue: ESADEFORUM, Building 1, Av. Pedralbes, 60-62, Barcelona
