In this assignment, you and your group will take an existing social enterprise that we have not discussed in class or read about in the books or discussion boards, and write an analysis of the organization and its impact. Please note, some of the guiding questions below will not be available on a website and require your own critical thinking and connections to the course content. Make sure to choose an organization that has enough public information to make informed comments, but do not choose a company only doing CSR (e.g., Starbucks, Coca-Cola, etc.). It might be best not to select an organization that you work for/volunteer with, as you might have already discussed them in this class in some capacity.
Writing & Content Guidelines:
Please limit direct quotes longer than one sentence from any source; instead, synthesize or summarize the points in your own words with an in-text citation/footnote and reference. You should use the following (does not need to be all, but a strong blend of these will result in a better submission): textbook, our class discussions/course lectures, the organization’s website, academic articles, AND reputable media sources available on the organization or the industry.
Please limit your connections to other organizations in this paper, as we have opportunities to make those types of connections through the weekly discussion boards. This assignment is graded on your ability to show your understandings of the course content and ability to analyze (and critique, as appropriate).
It is recommended that students avoid “I,” “me,” “us,” and “we” language within this assignment, unless the question it, as that can frame statements as reflection statements, rather than data/reference-informed statements. You may use this if referring to yourself as founder/leader of the social enterprise. Also, try to avoid extended/solely descriptive text (text that is just summarizing or describing something); if using this type of text, make sure to explain why this information is important for the reader to know.
The following questions can help guide your writing (organize them in whatever order best makes sense to you), and they do not have to be the only areas introduced (e.g., if you want to make connections to other areas). If a question does not apply to the case, you should explain why you cannot make a determination, informed by the content (if you are doing this too frequently, you might have to choose another organization).
What does this organization do? What industry is it in?
Is this a non-profit or for-profit business?
Is this a social enterprise or an ethical business?
What is the mission of this organization, and who does it seek to serve (e.g., who are its users and/or beneficiaries)? If different, who is the customer (e.g., who is paying/donating/financially investing)?
What is the problem this organization seeks to solve?
What SDG(s) does the organization connect to?
What are the organization’s assumptions? What is the organization’s theory of change?
How, if at all, does this organization provide value to its users/beneficiaries? Did it design this value with/in consultation with users/beneficiaries?
How did the organization start small (e.g., small scale, MVP), if applicable, and how did it iterate and grow throughout the years? Did they have to pivot at any point?
How do they measure, validate, and report their impact and progress? Are these vanity metrics or innovation metrics?
How are they accountable to their stakeholders?
How are the organization part of a larger change ecosystem (e.g., who does it partner with, who are other organizations who serve their beneficiaries/users, what organizations support them financially/with training/in-kind goods and services, etc.)
What are some possible critiques of the organization’s model, impact, financing, etc? How would you advise that it could improve? Be specific. (Option 1)
5+ FULL pages (not including headings, titles and works cited, Times New Roman, 12 pt font, 1 in margins, double-spaced, includes BOTH in-text citations/footnotes AND works cited list, and submitted as a Word doc.
https://www.warbyparker.com/
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