SFEDI Business Support Additional Standards

Unit A Apply your knowledge of social enterprise

To work effectively with social enterprises, you need to understand how the social enterprise sector works. This is important whether you are a general business adviser who is working with social enterprises or whether you are a specialist social enterprise adviser. It will also apply whether you are working with social enterprises at the concept stage, at start up or once established. You particularly need to understand: the values that social enterprise is built on and how this affects their working arrangements; the types of organisational structure that social enterprises normally follow; and the typical social, financial and developmental issues social enterprises face and the availability of support services to address these issues. Helping your social enterprise clients to work within their structures and constraints and overcome the key issues they are facing will significantly affect the quality of advice that you give them.

Unit B Develop opportunities to start social enterprises

This is about identifying and promoting opportunities for social enterprise. This involves recruiting and working with interested individuals and organisations (stakeholders), researching what might affect potential social enterprises and developing a proposal that describes the potential social enterprise and its likely success.

Unit C Help clients to start social enterprises

This is about deciding the purpose, values, principles, objectives and legal structure for the potential social enterprise. It involves deciding how the social enterprise will be structured and run and developing a social enterprise business plan.

Unit D Help social enterprises to improve their performance

This involves reviewing the social enterprise’s performance to make sure it is meeting its social and commercial objectives, improving the way it is structured and run, balancing its commercial and social objectives and preparing plans to achieve financial stability and independence.