Giving Compass' Take:

• Andrew Ng explains that venture partnerships are between corporations and social enterprises that want to make a difference. Navigating these partnerships can be difficult because there has to be mission alignment between the two entities. 

• What partnerships could you enter into to advance your mission? Are you ready to engage in productive partnerships? What are some examples of social enterprises that do this successfully?

• Read about the competitive advantages of social enterprises.

How can corporations and social enterprises partner to create a world that works for everyone? Last year, Acumen hosted a workshop on high-impact partnerships for leading social enterprises, global corporations, and the organizations that work to link them as a part of the Skoll World Forum Ecosystem Events, to explore this question. Supported by EY, Sainsbury’s, Pfizer and the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship, the session explored three different kinds of partnerships: Skills, Channel and Venture.

Venture partnerships bring together corporations and social enterprises and are designed to develop new businesses or provide the funds to scale a company’s operations and impact. These partnerships allow corporations to move beyond simply giving back and towards collaborative efforts to drive impact on the ground through entrepreneurial solutions. Many large corporations are now looking to build inclusive, sustainable business models and find that venture partnerships is an approach that works well.

There are many examples of success in this space, such as Pfizer Foundation’s Global Health Innovation Grants, which catalyzes and scales a range of health innovations in the developing world. Clínicas del Azúcar, one of the companies that benefit from the program, works to provide low-cost, high-quality care to prevent and treat diabetes in Mexico. Pfizer’s support has enabled the organization to grow to eight clinics, and the hope is to expand to 200 clinics in the coming years by replicating the model both regionally and globally. Pfizer’s Director of Corporate Responsibility Jenny Sia said that these types of investments help Pfizer to inform its business as the company looks to implement more inclusive business models in lower socio-economic countries.

Read the full article about creating partnerships by Andrew Ng at Acumen.