Giving Compass' Take:

• Here are several ways that social entrepreneurs are addressing concerns of COVID-19, primarily focusing on rebuilding the ecosystems and promoting communities of support. 

• What is the relationship between donors and social entrepreneurs? How can they work together to respond to this crisis?

• Read more on philanthropy in the time of COVID-19. 

COVID19 has hit social entrepreneurs hard. Their chances of recovering from the negative effects on their revenue, value chain, and talent will largely depend on whether they have access to a community of support, mentorship, and well-being. This is where ecosystems – nascent and established – will face the ultimate test of their purpose.

  1. Put on your oxygen mask before assisting others Ecosystem builders come in different shapes and sizes, with financial sustainability models that range from purely philanthropic to for-profit revenue streams. Many of us lead or work in organizations that enable us to support our entrepreneurial communities directly.
  2. Assess the damage: Agility is king Ecosystem builders cultivate agility to adapt to new circumstances.  “We’re a ‘done beats perfect’ kind of organization,” shared Rick Turoczy of Pie PDX in Portland. “When stores started shutting down, we immediately created a rough survey and over the course of 72 hours received almost 900 responses from small businesses sharing with us how they are impacted by COVID-19.”
  3. Activate an ecosystem through flow or talent, information, and resources Based on the collected data, ecosystem builders were quickly able to assess the most urgent needs of social entrepreneurs in their communities. “One of the immediate responses was buying gift cards directly from businesses,” reported Rick Turoczy. “Even if it meant kicking the can down the road a little bit, it was at least getting some capital into the hands of founders. Fortunately, we saw that percolate nationwide.”
  4. Engineer Serendipity and build trusting communities online 

Read the full article about how social entrepreneurs are responding to COVID-19 at Skoll Foundation.