Developing and extending the cooperative sector

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Developing and extending the co-operative sector
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Supporting established social enterprises

• Helen Seymour
• Head of Projects and Development

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Social Enterprises with a Wide Market Focus -
Invest to Save (2004)

• How existing mainstream business support
  mechanisms can be adapted or modified to better
  suit developing social enterprises so they become
  more sustainable
• Target enterprises with a wide market focus
  larger, growing rapidly or wanting to expand
• What skills and support are necessary?
• What support mechanisms are needed?
• How might a national pool of experts be developed
  to meet the needs of such businesses?

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Methodology

• Five organisations worked with seven target
  social enterprises
• Co-active Ltd Playtots Childcare Ltd and Mid
  Devon Community Recycling
• Co-operative and Mutual Solutions Oldham
  Community Leisure
• Economic Partnerships Ltd Sunderland Homecare
  Associates and Northumberland Social Firm and
  Enterprise Trust
• The Guild Recycle IT! Ltd
• Mutualadvantage Croydon Care Co-operative

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Conclusions- skill needs (enterprise and support
provider)

• Business and management skills operating in a
  democratic and/or participatory organisational
  culture
• Sector or trade specific skills
• Social enterprise specific skills
• Skills linked to culture change
• from bureaucratic to entrepreneurial
• from smaller relationship-focused to larger
  system-focused organisational cultures

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Conclusions types of support

• Process facilitation support
• ongoing relationship deep, long-term but
  occasional/erratic
• Expert interventions
• - one-off interventions in form of advice,
  consultancy or training

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Conclusions types of support

• Process facilitation support
• Includes
• stimulating initial ideas
• mentoring and supporting individuals
• project management
• identifying, briefing and moderating other
  experts
• negotiating with statutory organisations
• maintaining progress

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Conclusions types of support

• Expert interventions
• Include
• Legal or contractual advice
• Research or business planning
• Property and building development
• Specialist and sector-based expertise
• Professional advice (solicitors, accountants etc)

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Conclusions skill needs of process support
facilitators

• strategic thinking
• ability to crystallise ideas
• empathy, relationship building and networking
• working knowledge of particular sectors
• ability to work with and empower a range of
  stakeholders
• track record in resource acquisition/funding bids
• ability to interpret enterprises needs to
  moderate

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Process support facilitators skill needs II

• business planning, financial forecasting and
  modelling
• ability to up-skill and equip people from a range
  of backgrounds
• ability to support teams or groups democratic
  or participative
• experience of the management of change
• ability to empower

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Existing support provision - issues

• Funding and finance for support and development
• Consistency of provision local, regional and
  national
• Variability of Business Link Operators the
  mainstream
• Relationships with public sector

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National pool referral service - proposal

• Aims
• Ensure skills and support experience of process
  support facilitators organised on a national
  basis to meet needs of more complex developments
• Improve access by the sector to the technical
  expertise provided by professional specialists
• Integrate roles of sub-sectoral organisations
• Create an inclusive system, so all advisers with
  the skills identified can be accessible to the
  market

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Components of the service

• National telephone point - staffed
• Website
• Email enquiry line
• Maintenance of information bank on process
  support facilitators, technical experts, local
  and regional agencies

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National pool - key components and issues

• Accountability
• Quality standards
• Market-making and promotion
• Payment and financing
• Regional pot for specialist consultancy?
• Future service by region?

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SBS - Feasibility study for a national referral
service (2006)

• Did more mature social enterprises need
  specialist support?
• Were they getting this support?
• What is the environment for social enterprise
  support?
• What are the growth opportunities for the sector?
• Will the IDB model meet the sectors needs?
• What accreditation systems met the sectors
  needs?
• What existing national, regional and local
  support provision was available for this
  sub-sector?
• Would a national brokerage system be politically
  acceptable?
• How would it work?

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Where support comes from

• Mainstream business link operators
• Private sector
• Social enterprise sector
• Trade sector
• Business networks
• Wide variety of quantity and quality of SE
  business support
• Strong support agencies lead to more
  sophisticated SEs

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Brokerage schemes

• National Business Link Consultants Register
• Social Enterprise Training and Support (SETAS)
• PROVIDE project
• Waste Resources Action Programme (WRAP)
• Institute of Management Consultants
• Institute of Business Advisors
• Also informal sector based systems
• Mediated or not mediated?
• How is quality assessed?

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Conclusions

• Large/growing/complex social enterprises poorly
  served by the current brokerage models
• Key issues to be addressed
• Quality assurance
• Attractiveness to providers
• Accessibility
• Evaluation
• Appropriate governance

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Developing and extending the co-operative sector