Typology of growth strategies and the role of social venture’s intangible resources
Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development
ISSN: 1462-6004
Article publication date: 1 August 2017
Issue publication date: 2 October 2018
Abstract
Purpose
Building on the resource-based view of the firm the purpose of this paper is to study the intangible resources available for social ventures, and presents a typology of growth strategies based on the intangible resources possessed by those enterprises.
Design/methodology/approach
This research applies a multiple case study technique for ten social enterprises in Egypt listed on Ashoka and Schwab Foundation websites. The research employs a purposive sampling technique. Data triangulation is used based on reports, websites, and interviews with social entrepreneurs and employees.
Findings
The study has three main findings: describing the intangible resources needed by social ventures to grow; detailing the growth strategies adopted by social ventures and corresponding funding mechanisms; explaining how intangible resources affect the selection of growth strategies, and how these interact with the context to produce expected outcomes. Overall, a typology for growth strategies of social ventures is presented.
Research limitations/implications
This paper is an original attempt to advance research on social enterprises in relation to the RBV and the domain of venture growth and impact scale-up.
Practical implications
This research is beneficial for social ventures and venture philanthropists who wish to learn about the specific resources important for venture growth, and understand the suitable strategies and context for organizational growth and impact scale-up.
Originality/value
This research is one of the few attempts to study and explain the types of intangible resources in social ventures and the role of different resource bundles in deciding social venture growth strategy.
Keywords
Citation
El Ebrashi, R. (2018), "Typology of growth strategies and the role of social venture’s intangible resources", Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, Vol. 25 No. 5, pp. 818-848. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSBED-03-2017-0104
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited