This article: (1) reviews the literature on ‘social entrepreneurship’, with particular attention to its definition and distinguishing features; (2) develops a conceptual framework and typology of social entrepreneurial ventures based on social ecological principles; and (3) analyses the framework through a number of examples and cases. This typology has both theoretical and practical implications. It enables the classification of social entrepreneurial ventures and provides an understanding of their organisation and functioning. It can also guide emerging social entrepreneurial ventures in strategic decision making to achieve growth and financial sustainability and assist them in setting realistic criteria for evaluating their short and long-term performance.
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