Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) organised Social Entrepreneurship Conclave on August 2nd, 2019 at Hotel Alt Air Kolkata. The agenda behind the conclave was to ignite young minds with a theme “Mission + Profit: What is the balance?” The theme was designed to deliberate on how mission and compliments, strengthen or undermine each other. Along with the main theme, the conclave had a special focus on sustainability and business models which address social issues like Health and Sanitation.
The occasion was graced by the presence of many dignitaries including Mr Arnab Chakrabortty, National Head, EMPRETEC India Foundation, Mr Dipankar Chakrabarti, Co-Chairman, CII Eastern Region ICTE subcommittee & Executive Director, PricewaterhouseCoopers Pvt Ltd, Mr P S Reddy, Co-Chairman, CSR & Affirmative Action subcommittee, CII Eastern Region and MD, JAMIPOL Ltd.
Social Entrepreneurship Conclave: Social Entrepreneurship succeeds on the foundations of goal setting, initiatives and risk-taking, experts deliberate
Addressing a sizable gathering, Mr Arnab Chakrabortty said, “A true social entrepreneurship is an entity which takes risks being sustainable and also has an assurance of income. The foundation of any “successful” social entrepreneurship lies on the three foundations of goal setting, information, opportunity seeking and risk-taking. The entrepreneurs should have an elaborate business plan, and they should seek out and build business networks, take initiatives to do sustainable work. Building one’s confidence will help strengthen social entrepreneurship. ”
Delivering his special address at the Conclave, Mr Dipankar Chakrabarti said, “One is an entrepreneur only when one is successful. Social entrepreneurs should ideally strive to make opportunities to work and make for a more just social equilibrium. Benevolence springs from “being benevolent to one’s self” and social entrepreneurs should focus on the “base of the pyramid” as social entrepreneurship has high-value provisioning in the society.”
In his address, Mr P S Reddy said, “Social Entrepreneurship has now acquired a global persona and it is fascinating to observe how major developmental institutions like the UN and the World Bank are recognizing the power of social enterprise and the role that incubators and early-stage impact funds are playing in the development in Low-Income countries and emerging economies. With an estimated two million social enterprises, India becomes one of the most dynamic social entrepreneurship environments globally. A vibrant start-up community, as well as sustained interest and support from impact investors in India and the world, have resulted in hundreds of projects providing access to basic services and making dramatic changes in the lives of millions of Indians.”
The Social Entrepreneurship Conclave had deliberations on the growth and transformation in this geography and also inspiring stories of successful entrepreneurs who divulged their journeys and challenges.
