Jakob Horvat
Werner Pritzl runs a company that paves the way back to the labor market for people. With training, additional qualifications and other training measures. This service to the company is not a single business, but a business purpose. "Transjob" is a socially inclusive company: "We receive public subsidies, including from the Public Employment Service. Because every person who finds work through our work brings money to the state and costs less. "
Effect: Investments = 2: 1
These investments in the company pay off. And to an extent that was underestimated until recently. For this purpose, Olivia Rauscher and her colleagues from the Competence Center for Nonprofit Organizations and Social Entrepreneurship of the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration presented the results of their study. It shows that every euro invested in the integration of disadvantaged people into the labor market generates the equivalent of 2,10 Euro. Overall, 27 Lower Austrian companies were examined with a so-called SROI analysis. This stands for "Social Return on Investment", measures the benefits of the stakeholders, evaluates them in monetary terms and compares them to the investments. "The company benefits from an impact that is twice as large as the investments. The public sector levies additional taxes, the AMS saves unemployment benefits, and the healthcare system spends less on people suffering from the consequences of unemployment, "explains study author Olivia Rauscher.
Social Business
There are many definitions of social business. The must criteria include a social or environmental impact as an organizational goal and provide no or a very limited profit distribution, but reinvestment of surpluses. Market revenues have to be earned for the self-preservation of the company and ideally, employees and other "core stakeholders" should participate in the positive effects. A mapping study by WU Vienna estimates the number of social businesses in Austria according to this definition on 1.200 to 2.000 organizations - ie start-ups and established non-profit organizations. In the social economy and the non-profit sector 5,2 percent of all employees work, the gross value added is just under six billion euros. Both stocks have been rising faster than those of the overall economy since 2010. An indication of how much this area is on the way. Forecasts from economic experts assume 1.300 to 8.300 Social Businesses in the year 2025. In other words, the number of organizations will at least double in the next ten years. The AMS funded these organizations known as "socio-economic enterprises" or "non-profit employment projects" in 2015 with a total of around 166,7 million euros.
Social Business: Social Added Value Instead of Maximum Profit
Solving social problems with entrepreneurial approaches is becoming fashionable. What used to be charitable associations and non-profit aid organizations is becoming a social business business model for social entrepreneurs. "Traditional businesses basically have the goal of generating profits. NGOs (non-governmental organizations), casually speaking, want to improve society. Social entrepreneurs try to combine both, ie they want to solve social problems with entrepreneurial approaches. Such companies are close to social impact thinking. But even traditional companies should show their social effects. I am sure that many companies will generate positive effects through their corporate activities ", Olivia Rauscher outlines her idea of sustainable entrepreneurship. It would be important to measure and present these effects. Until now, this has happened mainly with NGOs and within the scope of individual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities, otherwise most companies only show the economic profit, but not the social one. Rauscher pleads for more: "Then one would see how great the social effects of individual company activities are. The company can then decide where it wants to invest more and where less. This would allow us to move from a meritocracy to an impact society in the longer term.
Trend or trend reversal?
The pension system tilts, the unemployment rate is at a record high with 9,4 percent and 367.576 persons (March 2016), the challenges for the working world and the social system are increasing. And it seems that the state alone is overwhelmed. The economy can play a crucial role here. Assuming that the trend reversal is continuing. For the profit maximization per se, which so far has been in the focus of classic companies, does not solve any social problems. Judith Pühringer of the umbrella organization for social enterprises demands a rethink: "If my horizons as an entrepreneur only relate to the period of time in which I am head of the company am, then a rethinking is difficult. But when I think of the next generation and the generation after that, and of what framework conditions they will find, then logically, profit maximization can not be in the foreground. Then I have to rely on cooperation and sustainability. That's the trend, clearly. "
Study "Social pays off"
The Competence Center for Nonprofit Organizations and Social Entrepreneurship of the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration has carried out a study and calculated how much investment in the integration of disadvantaged people in the labor market pays off. The result: For every Euro invested, the equivalent of 2,10 Euro is generated. The outsourcing of productions to social enterprises in the region instead of to remote low-wage countries is also a factor that strengthens Austria as a business location. In addition, the study identifies numerous other public-sector profiteers, such as the Public Employment Service, the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Province of Lower Austria, the Federal Government, municipalities, social insurance institutions and - last, but not least - the general population.
Social Business: Can anyone do that?
To make the world better with entrepreneurial thinking and action should therefore become more socially acceptable. That is, not only small businesses and idealists should like it, but also the hard-hitting calculators of the finance departments of large companies. Can this work? "My personal belief is that you can run any business as a social business. Even those in the profit-maximizing environment can consider what contribution they can make, for example, to the integration of disabled or unemployed people and what environmental protection. So it is not enough to superficially turn the CSR screw and sell the results in a marketing-effective manner. But it takes a long-term and serious commitment, "says Pühringer.
There are some good arguments for social business. "Employees who work in a company with social added value see more sense in their work, are more motivated. Since the staff is the key to the company's success, you would immediately feel the effects, "says Judith Pühringer. Olivia Rauscher observes that in other countries, such as Great Britain, many public subsidies are already tied to a social impact: "Internationally, the trend is much more noticeable. In Austria, this is the first. That would be a good start for companies today jump up and demonstrate their social benefits as a first-mover. Customers are demanding this more and more, see fair trade products. And the pressure will continue to rise. "
Black and white thinking is outdated
The importance of social business in the EU is great, more than eleven million employees work here, that is about six percent of all employees. Ascending trend. The European Commission's strategy paper states: “If companies accept their social responsibility, they can generally build lasting trust among employees, consumers and citizens as a basis for sustainable business models. More trust, in turn, helps create an environment in which companies can work innovatively and grow. "Judith Pühringer also sees a viable path in" not aligning the entire corporate purpose with providing social services, but rather creating individual non-profit units that do not make profits, but concentrate on the social and environmentally sustainable area The profits are then reinvested accordingly. It is time to give up black and white thinking, that is completely out of date. "
Werner Pritzl and his social business are not profit-oriented, he has to earn twenty percent of the costs, the rest are subsidies. His company also has to calculate: "One should not overstep the curve, if my company does not pay off, I have done no good for anyone. But I am for the golden middle ground. Maybe a little less dividend for shareholders, a few hundred thousand euros less for the CEOs, hire a few employees and give something back to society. "
