The Role of Universities in Social Enterprises’ Ability to Scale: a Dynamic Capabilities Approach

Social enterprises (SEs) driven by a dual mission to address social and environmental challenges, encounter significant hurdles in accessing funding, human resources and scaling their impact. This study explores the under-researched role of universities in influencing the development of dynamic capabilities (DCs) within SEs. DCs, essential for navigating dynamic contexts, are particularly crucial for social entrepreneurs in resource-scarce environments. The research focuses on the European Latin American Network (ELANET), an international alliance supporting SEs. Quantitative data from social entrepreneurs in low-income contexts reveal that university training and information significantly moderate SEs' ability to implement financial resources, positively impacting their scaling efforts. The novel findings include the identification of key training types that are most effective in enhancing the financial resource implementation capabilities of SEs, demonstrating the moderating role of universities in developing dynamic capabilities and highlighting the direct correlation between tailored university support and improved scalability of SEs. The study emphasizes the specific type of training and information crucial for fostering these positive outcomes, thus guiding universities in what best to offer as training and practitioners in social entrepreneurship in what support they can receive from universities in their efforts to scale their social impact.