manitoba social enterprise strategy...mses project manager frank atnikov, social enterprise program...

Progress Report June 2017

Manitoba Social Enterprise Strategy

Social Enterprise Manitoba

The Canadian Community Economic

Development Network (CCEDNet) - Manitoba

has been supporting social enterprises for

nearly two decades. Non-profit organizations

who pursue cultural, environmental, social or

economic goals through business activity are

an important piece of the community economic

development landscape in Manitoba. The

Manitoba Social Enterprise Strategy launched

in 2015 with a $750,000 commitment over

three years managed by CCEDNet Manitoba,

after a collaborative development process

involving social enterprise leaders, developers,

and government stakeholders. Leveraging this

amazing opportunity, CCEDNet Manitoba has

established Social Enterprise Manitoba as a hub

for information, development services, sector

development, and outreach to new partners,

purchasers, and consumers.

Social Enterprise Manitoba intends on

supporting the broad social enterprise

community for the long-haul while the focus

of the MSES is more targeted on stabilizing

and scaling up work integration social

enterprise (WISE). The MSES is leveraging the

success of the local sector to strengthen the

infrastructure and ecosystem of support for

social enterprise and our hope is for Social

Enterprise Manitoba to be one of the lasting

outcomes of this important community —

government collaboration.

Message from the Social Enterprise Manitoba team

The Manitoba Social Enterprise Strategy

also includes 38 recommendations across

six pillars including skill development,

finance, market opportunities, demonstrating

impact, regulatory systems, and network

building. Over three years, Social Enterprise

Manitoba is working to implement these

recommendations, with our partners in the

sector and in local governments. We want to

extend sincere thanks to the entrepreneurs,

community builders, government employees,

and other stakeholders who have taken part

in consultations, working groups, events,

and meetings as we create an equitable and

sustainable economy together.

Our team can’t wait to continue rolling out

activities and hope you’ll join us in considering

what comes next as we support community

building enterprise.

Find out about what we’ve been up to at

www.socialenterprisemanitoba.ca

With thanks,

Sarah Leeson — Klym,

Regional Director

Darcy Penner,

MSES Project Manager

Frank Atnikov,

Social Enterprise Program Manager

Progress Report / June 2017 / Social Enterprise Manitoba

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I N T R O D U C T I O N

http://www.socialenterprisemanitoba.ca

Having a nuanced understanding of social

enterprise in Manitoba will improve strategic

decision making with the limited resources

available for investment. Over the course of the

MSES implementation project, we have been

asking Manitoba workforce integration social

enterprises (WISE) to provide us with data to

give a snapshot of who they’re serving, what

industry sectors they’re operating in, and how

many jobs are created through their work.

Surveying the size and shape of WISE in ManitobaAs with all data collection, there are limitations, but slowly a picture is

developing of an emerging sector with a multitude of practices and models

serving some of those most often excluded from our economy.

These findings will be used

to inform and advocate for

future sector investment.

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SReporting on the barriers individuals are

facing has its challenges. Factors such as a

a reluctance to be overly intrusive and the

confluence of multiple barriers prevent this

type of information from being a precise

science. That being said, this information

gives an indication of the most prominent

barriers to employment faced by social

enterprise employees.

In 2016, these 19 social enterprises were

providing employment and training

opportunities to over 850 people.

Out of 19 social enterprise respondents

of 37 surveyed:


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W I S E S U R V E Y

MSES Steering Committee

This governance team includes social

enterprise leaders and key government

representatives managing files important to

this sector. Working this way means programs,

events, and suggested policy change is

grounded in the needs and capacities of both

the sector and the Provincial government.

This co-creation model enables consistent

communication between community and

government, and is one of the best practices

emerging from this model that other places in

Canada are watching.

Work grounded in the community

Current members include

Sarah and Darcy

Social Enterprise Manitoba

Damon Johnston

Aboriginal Council of Winnipeg

Shaun Loney

Aki Energy

Carinna Rosales

SEED Winnipeg

Audra Penner

Imaginability

Representatives from

Entrepreneurship Manitoba,

Industry, Training &

Employment Services,

and Manitoba Housing.


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C O M M U N I T Y

Working Groups

Two regular working groups are supported through the

MSES implementation project. The WISE Working Group

brings together practitioners and leaders of social enterprises

in a community of practice that discusses challenges, and

considers collective action. The Social Finance Working Group

includes lenders, fund and foundation managers, developers,

and financial institutions all considering ways we can

collectively unlock more capital to support the growth and

scaling up of social enterprise initiatives.

Annual Report Back Meetings

Each year, the sector reconvenes to hear about the activities

of the previous year and voice their ideas and concerns moving

forward. The yearly work plan is built from the feedback

received here.

Work grounded in the community

Working together benefits more than us, it benefits an

entire community.

Social Enterprises can be successful and create

lasting impacts within a community.


55

C O M M U N I T Y

Idea Jam

In December 2016, Social

Enterprise Manitoba teamed

up with Transition Winnipeg

and the Winnipeg Chamber of

Commerce to host an after-hours

mixer and ideas jam. The social

enterprise, business and

environmental community

came together to meet, mingle,

problem solve and provide input

on three exciting local economy

initiatives in Manitoba related

to inclusive job and training

opportunities for people

facing barriers to employment

or sustainable, low-carbon

enterprise initiatives.

Expect more collaboration for

these events in the years ahead!

Canadian Conference on Social Enterprise

Every two years, the Social

Enterprise Council of Canada

(SECC) partners with a local

host to present the Canadian

Conference on Social Enterprise

(CCSE). CCEDNet Manitoba is

proud to have been the local

host for the 2017 CCSE in

Winnipeg on May 10 - 12, 2017.

This event brings together

our most innovative social

entrepreneurs, investors,

policy makers, and supporters

in a spirit of collaboration and

learning, to celebrate and

advance the country’s growing

social enterprise sector.

Over 225 entrepreneurs,

community builders, and

sector leaders converged on

the University of Winnipeg and

nine social enterprise sites of

success for three packed days

of networking and deep-dive

collective learning.

Reaching out and growing awareness


6

G R O W I N G AWA R E N E S S

Spirit of Winnipeg Awards

Recognition and celebration are

important. They raise the profile

of social enterprises’ work

and the spirit of those doing

the work. We’ve contributed

advice, nominations and

promotion to the Winnipeg

Chamber of Commerce in their

Spirit of Winnipeg Awards,

which has included a category

dedicated to non-profits and

social enterprises. Past social

enterprise nominees and

winners include:

Mother Earth Recycling

2017 winner!

BUILD Inc.

2016 winner!

Diversity Food Services

2015 winner!

L’Arche Winnipeg Inc.

Manitoba Green Retrofit

Resource Assistance for Youth

Market development

Access to markets is essential

for social enterprises’ impact.

Increasing sales can be one of

the strongest ways to increase

this impact.

In 2016, we supported the Social

Purchasing Portal’s Networking

Expo, featuring 35 enterprises

and bringing social enterprises

to the public. An area for

future consideration is how

to dramatically increase the

number of consumers thinking

social when they shop.

We also began testing a

procurement intermediary

to focus on creating new

relationships with public and

private sector purchasers. With

just a partial year to pilot this

concept, we’ve seen several

new purchasers engage with

social enterprises. With more

time, this approach promises

to scale up social procurement

across Manitoba.

Reaching out and growing awareness


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G R O W I N G AWA R E N E S S

A key action is building relationships with new stakeholders so awareness is built

and a wider range of supports, markets, and entrepreneurs is included in the sector.

Staff have presented to, exhibited, and met with multiple groups like Aboriginal

Chamber of Commerce, Assiniboine Credit Union, Community Futures,

Entrepreneurship Manitoba, Impact Evaluators focus group, Red River College,

Rotary Club of Winnipeg, University College of the North, University classes at the

Asper School of Business, University of Winnipeg, Vision Quest, Winnipeg Indigenous

Executive’s Circle, and many others.


8

Funding Revolutions: A model for addressing the challenges of upstream investment in human services

There is growing consensus across the political

spectrum that it is more cost effective to

invest in preventing social problems before

crisis occurs, than it is to invest in addressing

the problem further down the road. However,

significant barriers prevent this from happening.

This report addresses these barriers while

presenting a model for making upstream

investments in human services through a

publicly-financed, pay-for-success investment

fund, specifically designed to invest in

innovative, preventive initiatives. The model

proposed here goes beyond social enterprise.

Innovations in fields such as education

and healthcare are well within the scope

of investment opportunities for this fund.

We’re glad to contribute this research to the

dialogue and practice surrounding preventive

investments, and encourage the Manitoba

government to invest in the opportunities our

social enterprise practitioners see.

Research

Discussions on Social Enterprise FInancing in Manitoba

Social Enterprise Manitoba released a new

report looking at the social enterprise

financing landscape in Manitoba. The report

authors interview members of the Winnipeg

Social Finance Working Group as well as

private consultants to get a snapshot of the

opportunities and challenges social enterprises

face for accessing financing, and where sector

leaders should focus their efforts to improve

the Manitoba landscape.

Find the full reports at

www.socialenterprisemanitoba.ca


9

R E S E A R C H

http://www.socialenterprisemanitoba.ca

Social Enterprise Institute

Social Enterprise Manitoba partnered with the

Social Enterprise Institute (SEI), an initiative by

Common Good Solutions in Halifax. SEI is an

online learning platform for social enterprise

practitioners — to help anyone, regardless of

location or economic ability, to set-up a social

enterprise to address issues and causes they

care about.

SEI was also created to make learning

easier to implement; to take the hassle out

of learning new skills by delivering seamless,

short, on-demand eLearning produced by

industry professionals. If you come with a

passion to start social enterprise, SEI can

deliver the pathway. For any idea, of any size,

starting at any point in development.

Building Skills, Knowledge, and Networks

Check more on the website

www.socialenterpriseinstitute.ca


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S K I L L S , K N O W L E D G E , A N D N E T W O R K S

http://www.socialenterpriseinstitute.ca

Train the Trainer

Part of working strategically is finding

‘dominos’ — which action can we take that will

start a chain reaction, building momentum

towards the goal? One way we did this was

to engage existing business and economic

developers across Manitoba who might not be

familiar with social enterprise.

Our workshop, Train-the-Trainer on Social

Enterprise Development supported by

Common Good Solutions from Halifax,

gave developers a new set of tools to use

and a strong sense of social enterprise and

community-led business. Adding to the

impact, as part of the training, we paired the

developers with emerging enterprise leaders

so these social enterprises would have new

connections and a work plan to strengthen or

launch their social enterprise.

We hosted sessions in Thompson, Winnipeg and

Brandon, reaching over 50 participants. In the

short time we piloted this training session, two

of the participant social enterprises have begun

operations: Workforce Staffing Solutions and

Happy Sprouts Childminding.


Other participating organizations

• Brandon Friendship Centre• Bug n’ Scrub — Brandon

Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation

• BUILD• City of Thompson• Community Economic

Development Fund• Community Futures North Central• Community Futures Parkland• Community Futures Wesman• Cooperative Development

Services — Manitoba Government• Diversity Foods

• Entrepreneurship Manitoba• Food Matters Manitoba• Indigenous and Municipal Relations -

Manitoba Government• Industry, Training & Employment -

Manitoba Government• Happy Sprouts Childminding - West

Central Women’s Resource Centre• Manitoba Co-operative Association• Men Are Part of the Solution• New Directions - Genesis• Northern Healthy Foods Initiative• Northern Manitoba Food Culture

and Community Collaborative

• Prairie Partners Inc.• Rivers Train Station Restoration

Committee• Sawmill Cafe• SEED Winnipeg• Thompson Humane Society• Thompson Neighbourhood Renewal

Corporation• University College of the North• Workforce Staffing Solutions —

Manitoba Green Retrofit


11


Train the Trainer — Workshop Participants:

“I really enjoyed that this workshop was very hands on and worked through process

from start to finish to how to get from a series of ideas to a tangible plan and

executable steps to completion.”

“This has given me so much confidence.”

“This workshop format is highly effective. It is sequential and logical. The pace is fast

but that is helpful in keeping focused on the higher level things and not getting mired

in details.”


12

Social Finance 101

Developed by one of our key partners, SEED

Winnipeg, we held a workshop that provided

an introduction to the world of social finance

(it’s much more than just social impact bonds!).

Participants learned why it is important for their

organization, how it is applicable, and what the

national and international trends are. Watch for

this one to be offered again in future years.


Social Impact Bonds 101

Conversations about SIBs are everywhere.

We brought together social enterprise

stakeholders and the broader non-profit

community to provide an overview of SIBs,

including the model, the motivations for

various stakeholders, opportunities and

challenges, and the assumptions we

make about government and non-profit

service providers.


13


Winnipeg Social Finance Forum

The MSES worked with the Winnipeg Social

Finance Working Group to host the first

Winnipeg Social Finance Forum. The one-day

conference strengthened the practice and

understanding of social finance by bringing

together stakeholders from across sectors to

learn together and network. Panel discussions

and breakout sessions focused on topics

such as national trends in social finance, local

strengths and opportunities, and experiences

with social impact bonds. Approximately 75

people attended the event throughout the

day. Attendees included financial institutions,

foundations, CED leaders and practitioners, civil

servants, political staff and business leaders.

Social Return on Investment Evaluation

Evaluation is essential for social enterprise,

both for improving practice and outcomes, as

well as demonstrating value to the public. This

training-day, provided by Simpact Strategy

Group from Calgary, gave social enterprise

practitioners and developers a practical

introduction to Social Return on Investment

evaluation for their work.



14


• Administrative and project

management support

from our parent CCEDNet

• Funding and Steering

Committee support by the

Province of Manitoba

• All our committee and

working group members

• Breakwater Group

• Common Good Solutions

• Eupraxia Training

• Entrepreneurship

Manitoba

• Honest Agency

• Proactive Information

Services

• Purpose Capital

• Social Purchasing Portal

• Researchers Shauna

MacKinnon and Carole

O’Brien

• SEED Winnipeg

• Simpact Strategy Group

• Social Enterprise Council

of Canada

• Social Enterprise Institute

• Transition Winnipeg

• University College of the

North

• University of Winnipeg

Business Chair in

Cooperative Enterprises

• Winnipeg Chamber of

Commerce

Thank you! The MSES implementation project has benefited from an

incredible range of partners and stakeholders.

MSES Project Partners

Partners

Thank you to all who are contributing.


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T H A N K Y O U

204-943-0547 / [email protected] / socialenterprisemanitoba.ca

manitoba social enterprise strategy...mses project manager frank atnikov, social enterprise program...

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