Life stories of leading social entrepreneurs in Cape Town: Balancing business goals, strategic innovation and social value creation

Abstract

The growth of the social enterprise sector in Africa is a testament to the need for social value creation. In developing economies such as South Africa there are macroeconomic challenges that government and business fail to address. Therefore, it is pivotal for social enterprises to address these challenges and succeed in creating social value. This thesis aims to investigate the key success factors that ensure sustainability for social enterprises. An exploratory approach is applied through the life stories of five social entrepreneurs and in-depth case studies of their leading social enterprises based in the Western Cape Province of South Africa.