Students must have passed the course OL641E - Organising and Leading Sustainable Organisations (7,5 credits).

The course is included in the main area Leadership and Organisation at the advanced level of 91-120 credits.

The aim of the course “Social Entrepreneurship, Social Innovation and Sustainability” is to provide students with an approach to organizing and leading sustainable development through entrepreneurship and innovation, with a special emphasis on social entrepreneurship and social innovation. As the traditional lines blur between non-profit enterprises, public services and business, it is critical that students understand the opportunities and challenges in this new landscape, which can be seen as highly relevant in the context of sustainability. The course aims at developing entrepreneurial skills and thinking frames for students who will lead sustainable economic, social and environmental initiatives in their future professions.

The course focuses on entrepreneurship, innovation and their relationship to sustainability with a special emphasis on social entrepreneurship and social innocation and is structured in a theoretically oriented lecture series and a series of study visitis and guest lectures with practitioners from the field.

The accumulation of knowledge serves students in the writing of an academic essay connecting social entrepreneurship, social innovation with sustainability.

Finally, students explore their entrepreneurship and innovation skills in an applied sustainability project.

Knowledge and understanding

After a successful completion of this course the student will be able to:

1- identify and describe principal models in social entrepreneurship and social innovation.

2- outline the development of the main models and line of thoughts in social entrepreneurship and social innovation.

3- identify, synthesise and classify the current research social entrepreneurship and social innovation and its relation to sustainability

4- define sustainability and sustainable development in the context of social entrepreneurship and social innovation in the context of non-profit enterprises, public services and business.

Skills and competencies

After a successful completion of this course the student will be able to:

5- review, examine and contrast principal models, discourse as well the research in social entrepreneurship and social innovation.

6- differentiate social entrepreneurship and innovation from business entrepreneurship but also differentiate their roles in sustainable developments

7- analyse and assess how social entrepreneurship and social innovation enable sustainability and how social entrepreneurs may act as change agents.

8- apply and integrate social entrepreneurial skills and thinking to sustainability, sustainable development and to project management for sustainability.

Judgement and approach

After a successful completion of this course the student will be able to:

9- critically reflect on the contemporary literature and research within social entrepreneurship and social innovation and their relationship to sustainability.

10- problematise organisations and leadership from a social entrepreneurship and a social innovation perspective in the aim of improving organisations to enable sustainability and sustainable development and in turn reflect on the roles of social entrepreneurs as change agents.

11- critically reflect on sustainability and sustainable development in the context of organisation and leadership through a “social entrepreneur and social innovator” set of minds.

12- reflect and improve his/her entrepreneurial capabilities and skills in the context of sustainability and sustainable development.

The course is based on:

• A series of lectures, class discussion, guest lectures and potential study visits. The lecture series is developed to support learning in regards to the learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 9 stated above.
• Caseworks and case discussion. The case series is developed to support learning in regards to the learning outcomes 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 stated above.
• Self-studies

The course is evaluated through five examinations as follows:

• One individual academic essay (4,5 credits) (UA) (learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 9)
• One Social entreprenurship project in groups; (3 credits) (UG) (learning outcomes 6, 7, 8, 10, 11 and 12). The project is evaluated on both a written report and active participation at a presentation seminar, and assesses the stated above. .

To pass the course:

To pass the course all examinations must have a passing grade A-E alt G. The course grade is determined by the grade on the individual academic essay.

• Biggeri, M., Testi, E., Bellucci, M., During, R., & Persson, H. T. R. (latest edition). Social Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation: Ecosystems for Inclusion in Europe. Taylor & Francis Group, London.
• Moulaert, F. & MacCallum, D. (latest edition). Advanced Introduction to Social Innovation. Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.
• Prazkier, R. & Nowak, A. (latest edition). Social entrepreneurship. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (Selected chapters).

Other scientific publications and case

A reading list with current research is provided at the beginning of the course.

Malmö University provides students who participate in, or who have completed a course, with the opportunity to express their opinions and describe their experiences of the course by completing a course evaluation administered by the University. The University will compile and summarise the results of course evaluations. The University will also inform participants of the results and any decisions relating to measures taken in response to the course evaluations. The results will be made available to the students (HF 1:14).

If a course is no longer offered, or has undergone significant changes, the students must be offered two opportunities for re-examination based on the syllabus that applied at the time of registration, for a period of one year after the changes have been implemented.

If a student has a Learning support decision, the examiner has the right to provide the student with an adapted test, or to allow the student to take the exam in a different format.

The syllabus is a translation of a Swedish source text