NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Friday, December 12, 2014

“Technology for the sake of technology is a waste of precious resources. Social entrepreneurs need to understand the deep value that ICT can bring to social change when it is offered in context, with appropriate training, and with the intent of empowering the user. We hope this report inspires many others to take up this challenge in ways we haven’t even begun to imagine.” Justin Rattner, President, Intel INTC -1.2%Foundation.

Technology can empower social entrepreneurship initiatives by democratizing access to information, creating business value, and enabling new capabilities—although not every technology initiative succeeds.

So how can social entrepreneurs increase the success of their endeavors? A recent Social Innovation Mapping Report by the Intel Foundation and Ashoka examines the best practices of entrepreneurs who successfully use Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to create social impact.

What the report found—and what Intel has validated through several of its programs—is that social entrepreneurs successfully using technology take some common approaches, even in very different environments.

Whether they are collaborating with young entrepreneurs in Africa or using crowdsourcing to discover missing persons in Thailand, there are five common success factors: