SUSTAINAIBILITY

SUSTAINAIBILITY

Insights from the case study The important actions described in the previous phase allowed both Quid’s business growth as well as its internal structural growth and management optimization. This, in turn, allowed Quid to find itself in a good market placement, a recognized territorial identity and benefitting from an important credibility.

Nevertheless, Quid continues to grow and to maintain high quality standards. Moreover, Quid keeps on expanding and seizing further territorial opportunities, collaborations and partnerships bringing more and more together the third sector and private sector with an entrepreneurial logic. Considering the sustainability of its job placement model, Quid intends to secure job stability and continuity to its employees with fragilities. The latter, in fact, are in particular need of consistency and security. Hence, Quid job placement program lasts longer compared to similar third sector/welfare programs. It consists of a three-month internship and a one year to one hear and a half apprenticeship. If the latter is successful, the person is offered a stable job contract. Moreover, within Quid, these employees can count on the support of a dedicated psychologist and a welfare officer which helps them accessing a wide range of services, including proper healthcare, welfare services or simply, for example, to find a babysitter. Quid job placement model has resulted in a strong employment retention rate which, in 2019, has reached 70%.

Also, Quid invests in its employees’ constant growth and innovation. As an example, it has recently provided them with a digitalization program, particularly useful for the more elderly workers. The effects of the latter proved to be strategic during the recent Covid-19 pandemic. At a broader level, Quid’s sustainability is also perfectly reflected in its circular and inclusive business model. Quid is sustainable as it reuses materials which are discarded by the traditional productive chains and it includes those fragile people traditionally left behind by the economy. Quid’s motto is, in fact “limit as a starting point”. Therefore, its model is sustainable as it transforms social and economic “limits” into resources. Moreover, a greater sustainable impact is Quid’s “contaminating vocation” to inspire its business partners to adopt more environmentally responsible production chains and inclusive business model and, ultimately, to transform the entire fashion industry. Proposing an alternative  Make sure your business management leads the social enterprise to gain and maintain a recognized territorial identity and credibility.  Keep monitoring the external context and seizing further opportunities for business growth and social impact maximization.

 Make sure your business model can secure long term and stable economic security to its employees, especially those with fragilities and belonging to vulnerable social categories.  Keep investing in training and capacity building for your employees enabling them to quickly respond to market and context changes.  Keep monitoring your business market placement and make sure it can keep filling unexplored market opportunities by pursuing its environmental and social objectives.  Make sure your business model can be quickly adaptable to context changes and seize new opportunities and new operational channels.  Invest in regularly measuring and assessing your social/environmental impact with regards to your own employees and also to the wider territory and stakeholders.  Have previous business investments and strategies led the social enterprise to gain a recognized territorial identity and credibility?  Once reached a full productive capacity relatively to the strategic investments which were made, are efforts still in place to keep monitoring the external context and seizing further opportunities for business growth and social impact maximization?

 Can the business model secure long term and stable economic security to its employees, especially those with fragilities and belonging to vulnerable social categories?  Are the employees equipped with proper capacity building which can enable them to quickly respond to market and context changes?  Is the business model economically, socially and environmentally sustainable? Is it able to place itself in a vacant marketplace with unexplored market opportunities?  Can the business model quickly adapt to context changes and seize new opportunities and new operational channels?

 Is the enterprise investing to measure its social impact with regards to its employees and also to the wider

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business model places Quid in a still vacant marketplace with unexplored market opportunities.

Another sustainability aspect of Quid is its capacity to promptly respond to the context changes. For example, during the Covid-19 pandemic, Quid managed to fill a new role, that of “coordinator” and job creator with regards to territorial social cooperatives. In order to respond to the market demand of its newly prototyped facial masks, Quid decentralized the production by subcontracting its orders to local social cooperatives. The latter were “tutored” in order to help them structure and organize their production. Quid offered them entrepreneurial capacity building and training, co-invested in their laboratories and provided them with free access to their prototypes, suppliers and business partners. This mutually advantageous strategy which turns market competitors in business partners multiplies Quid’s social impact on a wider territory.

Finally, to understand, value and communicate its social impact on its employees with fragilities as well as on the local territory, Quid collaborates with a local university for an impact measurement program financed by a territorial foundation with banking origins. territory and stakeholders?

4. KEY DETERMINANTS FOR EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION AND REPLICABILITY

Categories

ACTORS AND INSTITUTIONS  People in a condition of fragility/ economic and social exclusion.  A group of strongly motivated and socially engaged business idea developers.  Economic, sector specific “big players” which are willing to bet on the business idea and to provide grant start-up funding, means, and market networks.  Local retailers which can operate as first market intermediaries.  Territorial organizations and entities with financial means, such as philanthropic foundations.  Local industries/productive chains providing discarded materials/commodities/byproducts which can be used to cut down the cost of supply in the business model (local suppliers).  Well-established and well-known national or international companies sharing the business social/environmental vision and willing to become business partners.  Local public administrations and institutions endorsing the business idea and vision.

 Territorial third sector networks and social service providers allowing to reach people with fragilities and to partner in job reinsertion training programs (i.e., local social cooperatives offering job re-insertion programs)  Larger international organizations/institutions providing largerscale project opportunities (i.e., UN, UE, World Bank)  Who are those living a condition of/ at risk of fragility in your context? Do they have the resources and means to overturn their fragilities into strenghts? Can they access the workforce?

Do they have job opportunities?  Are the “developers” strongly motivated and engaged with the socially/environmentally oriented vision/idea?  Is there an economic, sector specific “big player” which is willing to bet on the business idea and to provide grant start-up funding, means, and market networks?  Are there local retailers open to believe in the business idea and agree to operate as first market intermediaries?  Are there territorial organizations and entities with financial means that can be reached and engaged in the business idea?  Are there local industries which could provide low-cost or costfree supply of raw material/commodity as inputs for the business model?  Can the business manage to engage and partner with other relevant and well known national and international companies not necessarily belonging to the same market sector?  Are local public administrators aware of the social mission and impact which the business idea is achieving? Can the business count on their public endorsement?  Can the business idea connect with territorial third sector networks and service providers in order to access their territorial knowledge of social/environmental issues and fragilities and, hence, scale its impact? Are there already existing social cooperatives working in the local context and promoting job re-insertion programs?  Can the business idea benefit from larger international project opportunities offered by international organizations/institutions?

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SOCIAL CAPITAL

HUMAN CAPITAL

GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK

INSTITUTIONAL & LEGAL FRAMEWORK  A solid and collaborative territorial network encompassing a wide range of stakeholders, such as clients, business partners, welfare service providers, suppliers, third sector organizations building on mutual trust, collaboration, credibility and strong engagement with the social/environmental vocation and mission.  Strong entrepreneurial mindset and skills, with a reasonable degree of risk-loving attitude.  Human capacities and competences to deal and work with vulnerable people.  Strong sector-specific competence, expertise and know-how.  Strong social vocation and engagement.  Strong imagination and creativity.  Strong capacity to communicate the business idea and vision.  High-quality working performance to gain and maintain market credibility.

 A participatory governance and horizontal decision making find positive effects such as a greater sense of ownership on the part of the team. Nevertheless, business management requires a consistent leadership and vision from the planning phase up to the implementation and sustainability phase. This might entail also the necessity to leave teammates behind if visions diverge and become an obstacle to the business growth.  It is not a prerogative for its de facto existence, but there are usually advantages for a social economy actor when operating in a juridical framework which legally recognizes social enterprises employing people in a condition of fragility and/or of social and economic exclusion. Firstly, it allows the enterprise to receive tax benefits and to comply with an ad hoc regulation. Secondly, it allows for a formal recognition of the social/environmental vocation of the enterprise, which, in turn, provides a guarantee and credibility to potential investors, partners, and project tenders. Thirdly, an acknowledged legal status allows the experience to be embedded and recognized within an institutional and juridical system ensuring a potential for its sustainability and long-lasting impact.  Can the business idea count on a collaborative, trusted and supportive territorial local network?

 Are the business idea developers strongly motivated and engaged with the socially/environmentally oriented vision/idea?

Do they have the technical, sector-specific and entrepreneurial capability and expertise?

 Can the business management count on a strong leadership?

 Is the business idea ready to be formalized in a legal form recognizing its social/environmental mission (i.e., social enterprise, social cooperative or other forms of enterprise which can benefit from an ad hoc fiscal and regulatory regime and recognition for their social mission)? If not, which legal form in your local context is the best suited for the start-up of the entrepreneurial idea and its social/environmental mission?

ECONOMIC RESOURCES

BASIC INFRASTRUCTURES  The existence of a market demand for the produced goods/offered services is the most fundamental condition for any entrepreneurial organization, especially if having the vocation to provide job opportunities for socially and economically excluded people.  Initial funding (i.e., grants, bank loans, etc.) and commercial support (such as free-of-charge use of production plants and warehouses, production means, retail shops; donated discarded materials/commodities/byproducts by local industries/productive chains cutting down supply costs, business partnerships (B2B) allowing to cut-down production costs, risk sharing and larger client outreach).

 At least basic infrastructure needed to start the entrepreneurial activity

SERVICES  Technical support to constitute and run the enterprise (i.e., legal, fiscal support).  Is there a market demand for the produced/offered product/service and its vision? Has the business idea been adequately validated and tested in the local market?

 Are there players that can provide funding and commercial support?

 Is your local context furnished with the basic infrastructures allowing for the entrepreneurial activity to carry out its value chain?

 Are there organizations/individuals that can provide technical support to constitute and run the enterprise?

5. DRAWBACKS AND RISKS

DRAWBACKS AND RISKS

Which are the main risks that may arise? COPING STRATEGIES

Which are the best strategies that could be implemented in order to cope with and/or prevent these risks?

Going from a group of engaged friends pursuing a shared vision to setting up and structuring a social enterprise, is a delicate transition which, if not properly managed with strong leadership, can set relevant risks and potentially jeopardize the business growth and success.

Among those belonging to the initial group of project developers, only two people are still in Quid nowadays.  It is necessary to leave teammates behind if visions diverge and become an obstacle to the business growth and to be able to bring in new competent and collaborators which are wellaligned on the business growth trajectory and vision.

One of the greatest challenges in the growth phase of a social enterprise is building its brand identity and a strong credibility. Creating and maintaining relationships especially with the for-profit sector means being able to meet a market demand and the market high-standard performance. A single false step in the growing stage can, therefore, cost the enterprise market reputation.  To face the market credibility challenge a constant high-quality service provision/ production performance is necessary.

6. FINAL REMARKS

 Value-added of this model and case-study as a driver for sustainable human development and SDG localization.

The analysed Work Integration Social Enterprise (WISE) model can be considered an effective driver for sustainable human development as it offers an alternative vision and strategy to the mainstream market and social logic. In fact, in this model, what the traditional market leaves behind becomes the starting point for a new economic, social and environmental paradigm, in that:  discarded materials/commodities and by-products resulting from market values chains become inputs for a new product life-cycle, hence providing low cost or cost-free supply for another production chain;  people belonging to a socially disadvantaged category or at risk of social exclusion and “left behind” from the labour market are offered a job training program and, eventually, stable job contracts. This entails restoring their social dignity, providing them a stable salary and, therefore the necessary means to achieve basic functioning and, ultimately, to expand their capability set (Sen, 1999).

In turn, these “subverting” social and economic mechanisms that can be put in place by just one social enterprise have the potential to trigger multiplying and cascade effects over the local territory where the experience takes place. Hence, by connecting to its local territory and engaging multiple territorial actors and networks, this model has a full “contamination” potential. Clients become aware of the social/environmental purpose and provide their contribution through their consumer choice, local public administrators, service providers and third sector organization can count on a successful re-insertion model, industry partners and suppliers become aware of a sustainable production model. Therefore, starting from a “micro” systemic change, namely the social and economic inclusion of people in a condition of fragility, the impact of this kind of experience can indeed reach a “macro” territorial level.

 Final determinants to be considered when implementing this model in other contexts.

This kind of WISE experience has a high replicability potential in that, provided that a local context can rely on, to some extent, those supporting elements highlighted in the analysis, many and different inclusive and sustainable business models can be built starting from “what’s left behind” from traditional markets. The main underlying assumption when replicating this model is that setting up a WISE model means creating an enterprise which, it goes without saying, requires a strong entrepreneurial mindset and logic. Moreover, for an enterprise to be successful, there needs to be a market demand for its offered services and goods which is the most fundamental condition for the raison d’être of a social enterprise, especially if having the vocation to provide job opportunities for socially and economically excluded people. Furthermore, work-integration activities require specific competences and capacity building to properly collaborate with people experiencing fragility and social exclusion. In addition, this kind of experience has more chances of being successful if well rooted and connected to its local

territory and value chains. In fact, they originate from the territories’ needs and for the vocational purpose to solve territorial social issues. At the same time, they draw economic, institutional, market and networking resources from the local territory in order to exist, survive and grow. Quid, as emphasised in the analysis, probably couldn’t have become what it is today without the support of big territorial market players, the territorial foundations, the local retailers, the supply from local textile industries, the strategic business partnerships, the territorial third sector networks, and the local administration institutional support. Therefore, cohesion building is another key determinant for the application of this model as well as the capacity to dialogue, partner and collaborate with multi-actor and multi-level territorial stakeholders.

USEFUL CONTACTS

UNDP ART GLOBAL INITIATIVE

Contact person: Andrea Agostinucci; Raffaella Garutti

Email: andrea.agostinucci@undp.org; raffaella.garutti@undp.org

Website: www.undp.org

ARCO (Action Research for CO-development)

Contact person: Enrico Testi

Email: enrico.testi@pin.unifi.it

Website: www.arcolab.org

Social Enterprise QUID:

Contact person: Silvia Scaramuzza

Email: organizzazione@progettoquid.it

Website: https://www.quidorg.it/