Social innovation: an exploration of the barriers faced by innovating organizations in the social economy

Chalmers, D. (2013) Social innovation: an exploration of the barriers faced by innovating organizations in the social economy. Local Economy, 28(1), pp. 17-34. (doi: 10.1177/0269094212463677)

Abstract

Social and community-based organizations are increasingly viewed as wellsprings of valuable social innovations. Government policies, most notably David Cameron’s Big Society initiative, have entrenched the concept of localism across the UK, and the move towards smaller government has placed the onus on communities to creatively tackle their own problems. While antecedent research on social innovation has largely concentrated on success stories, few have stopped to consider the profound nature of this shift and the operational obstacles it may pose for small resource-constrained organizations. This article seeks to contribute to current debates on social innovation by critically reviewing extant literature and proposing a model of ‘open’ social innovation. Furthermore, it serves as a tool to stimulate further discussion around the ‘opening up’ of the social innovation process and raises some timely questions about the efficacy of localism policy measures.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Chalmers, Professor Dominic
• Authors: Chalmers, D.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Management
• Journal Name: Local Economy
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• ISSN: 0269-0942
• ISSN (Online): 1470-9325
• Published Online: 13 November 2012