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Results of the 2nd Canadian Edition of Map the System 2018

May 15, 2018 No Comments

NOTE: This article was originally published on the RECODE website and has been cross-posted with permission.

On May 4th, 2018, RECODE and the Trico Charitable Foundation co-hosted the second Canadian edition of Map the System in partnership with the Skoll Centre from the University of Oxford. Map the System is an ‘alternative’ challenge where post-secondary students are tasked with taking a systems approach to social change by demonstrating their understanding of a social or environmental issue.

OUT AND ABOUT (April & May/18)

May 8, 2018 No Comments

There are a growing number of events connected to social entrepreneurship. Many of them happen in our home city, demonstrating what an incredible hub of activity Calgary is. The Trico Foundation team is pleased to attend many of them and wish we could attend more.

Effective Learning

April 26, 2018 No Comments

No matter how strongly you believe them, many of your views and beliefs about your venture are best guesses. As you move forward it is important to: have an understanding of what you need to be true in order for your social enterprise to achieve the social and financial goals you have set and find out, in the cheapest, fastest, most effective way possible, whether they are true.

Blending the Social and Entrepreneurial (Do You See Green?)

April 26, 2018 No Comments

While blending a social mission with an entrepreneurial model can be powerful, it can be surprisingly tricky. However, by mapping how your social model impacts your market value and the degree to which your social model addresses your customer’s needs map (and how these two aspects interact) you have the opportunity to identify a number of possible pressure points to keep an eye on as you move forward with your social enterprise.

The 6 Key Mindsets of Social Entrepreneurship (& Entrepreneurship & Changemaking)

April 26, 2018 No Comments

Effective learning is shrinking your feedback loops as much as possible: Everything you do that really matters should either confirm your thinking or teach you something new, and it should do so as cheaply, efficiently and quickly as possible. Effective learning is knowing what to test, how to test, and how to learn from the results of that test in a way that you use to improve your efforts and impact.

Making the Most of Your Early Adopter

April 26, 2018 No Comments

As a new venture or an existing venture that is looking to reach new customers, the first step to getting your customer groupings into a manageable bite-size pieces is finding the subgroup within your potential customers that share the traits of your ‘early adopter’ customer.

Estimating ‘Steady State’ Revenue & Expenses

April 26, 2018 No Comments

As you continue to flesh out your venture, you will need to begin assigning values and costs to the resources you have identified. The goal here is to move from understanding the costs and revenue of each unit of sale and/ or impact to how these things will look on a yearly basis when your venture reaches its stable state (This may or may equal your ultimate goal. It’s the state where most assumptions have been resolved and progress starts being steady. If you have no idea when that would be, imagine five years from now).

Your ‘Steady State’ Goals (Social & Financial)

April 26, 2018 No Comments

At Trico Foundation we often talk to groups about their goals for their social enterprise and discuss what their venture will look like when it has reached its desired steady state (here we are talking about down the road when you have reached your financial and social impact goals—please note that we previously referred to this as your five-year goals/ fifth year of operating, however each venture and industry will have a different indicators for stability and it is important to work with the desired goals/ markers that you have set out to indicate that your venture has reached its steady state).

Making the Most of Key Stakeholders

April 26, 2018 No Comments

This blog is an opportunity for us to introduce a number of groups and types of stakeholders that you may come in contact with/ have to respond to as develop or grow your social enterprise.

Determining Your Key Steps & Needed Capacities

April 26, 2018 No Comments

Now it’s time to shift gears and think of your end game – that is, what you want this venture to accomplish when it is up and running (from now on we will refer to this as your stable state). Ultimately, the art of being a start-up or expanding on your existing social enterprise is figuring out how to secure your ‘early adopter’ customer and then build up to your end game with the least amount of risk and the highest chance of success.

Shining light on our thinking & doing, our epiphanies & struggles, & our movement.

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