Affiliations:
Lappeenranta University of Technology, Lahti Unit, Lahti, Finland
Correspondence:
[*]
Address for Correspondence: Helinä Melkas, Lappeenranta University of Technology, Lahti Unit, Saimaankatu 11, 15140 Lahti, Finland. Tel.: +358 405881400; E-mail: helina.melkas@lut.fi.
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Social enterprises are often seen as a source of new and innovative solutions to persistent societal problems and a means for better inclusion of employees and customers. Because social enterprises combine business logic and social goals, they have vast potential to renew business and social life; therefore, it is vital to understand how their creation can be initiated and supported. OBJECTIVE: This study provides an overview of the participatory design process for a new social enterprise as it appears in practice. METHODS: The methods used in this case study guided the participants – mental health and substance abuse rehabilitees – in the co-creation and refinement of a business idea. The methods used enabled participants to acknowledge their own strengths or preferences for their potential future work, which was a unique means of establishing a new social enterprise. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Social empowerment of the participants/future employees of the social enterprise formed the important, intangible capital in this case. By definition, the core of social enterprises is the customer- and employee-driven nature. This study clarifies how a social enterprise functions as a laboratory of social innovation at the local and community levels.
Keywords: Social business, social innovation, rehabilitation, case study, Finland
