Resource library
This library offers a curated collection of valuable tools, guides, and resources that exist in the social enterprise sector. Explore guides, articles and many more to support your journey, whether you’re starting a social enterprise, tackling sector challenges, or navigating the impact economy.
154 results found
“How Communities Awaken” by Vivian Hutchinson explores active citizenship, community development, and Māori cultural wisdom. Based on the Taranaki Masterclass and Community Conversations, these essays provide insights on fostering connection, creativity, and social change.
This article by Sally Osberg and Roger Martin examines how social entrepreneurs drive systemic change, highlighting Andrea and Barry Coleman’s Riders for Health. By addressing transportation gaps in African healthcare, the Colemans exemplify how leveraging expertise and engaging stakeholders can create sustainable impact. The authors argue that successful social entrepreneurs focus on specific needs while aligning broader ecosystems, enabling transformative change that goes beyond business-driven outcomes.
This Stanford article outlines nine strategies for effective board leadership in social enterprises, focusing on building legacy, fostering respect, clarifying roles, and supporting executive success. Key tactics include tailored board experiences, efficient meetings, succession planning, professional recruitment, feedback, and addressing underperformance, all aimed at creating a collaborative, impactful board culture.
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This resource, adapted from the teaching profession, provides social enterprise leaders with strategies for navigating challenging management conversations. It highlights the ineffectiveness of "hard sell" or "soft sell" approaches in driving change and maintaining relationships. Instead, it introduces the "Open to Learning" framework, emphasising validity, respect, and commitment. Leaders are guided to approach conversations with shared decision-making and an open mindset, offering a practical tool for addressing performance issues and implementing change in dynamic work environments.
Theaster Gates, a potter by training and a social activist by calling, tells his story of transforming abandoned buildings to create community hubs that connect and inspire those who live there. A famously inspiring talk, it shows how problems can be reframed as opportunities, how to start with what you’ve got, how to make something out of nothing and how culture can be a catalyst for social transformation.
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ILO Decent Work Agenda
PlatformsThe ILO Decent Work Agenda promotes fair, secure, and productive employment worldwide. It provides policy guidance, resources, and best practices to support job creation, labour rights, and social protection.
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Impact Boom Blog and Podcast
PodcastsImpact Boom has undertaken 100s of interviews with social entrepreneurs and change-makers from across Australia and around the world. Produced as podcasts and blogs, their platform provides an amazing range of impact insights and stories.
The free, self-directed Impact Investing Hub Playbook supports Australia’s impact investing ecosystem, offering modular content on Impact Investing, Impact Measurement, and Revenue Diversification, tailored for investors, advisors, and organisations seeking investment.
This playbook by Acumen and EY provides a framework and case studies for building inclusive businesses that benefit low-income and marginalised communities while remaining financially sustainable. It offers practical guidance on strategy, governance, workforce inclusion, and impact measurement.
The Inclusive Service Standards provide a framework for culturally safe and inclusive service delivery, particularly in aged care. They offer training, self-assessment tools, and case studies to help organisations embed inclusivity and improve service practices.
The AIGI Indigenous Governance Toolkit supports Indigenous organisations in building strong, culturally-rooted governance.
Indigenous Knowledge Centres (IKCs), operated by the State Library of Queensland, empower Indigenous communities to preserve culture, share knowledge, and integrate modern technology. They support local leadership, digital access, and cultural innovation.
The ILSC supports Indigenous communities in reclaiming and managing land and sea Country. By providing funding and fostering partnerships, it helps restore ecosystems, creates economic opportunities, and strengthens environmental governance. Through projects that integrate Indigenous knowledge with modern conservation practices, the ILSC promotes leadership and sustainable development, ensuring the restoration of cultural and ecological heritage for Traditional Owners.
This video series explores 'Indigenous Leadership in Business,' highlighting themes of collective leadership, stewardship, relationships, community benefit, and cultural responsibility to inspire empowerment and transformative change.
The ‘Inner Development Goals (IDGs)’ framework outlines 23 essential skills and qualities to foster personal growth, leadership, and systemic change, enabling individuals and organisations to better address global challenges like the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Protecting intellectual property is essential for social enterprises. IP Australia offers info on patents, trademarks, and more, including registration support.
This podcast episode features Sally McGeoch from the Westpac Foundation, discussing her journey, social enterprise challenges, and opportunities. The conversation covers funding, collaboration, and impactful initiatives supporting meaningful employment for marginalised groups.
This article introduces the 'impact economy', a model integrating social, environmental, and economic outcomes. It explores its definition, relevance in the Anthropocene era, and components like impact-driven business, investment, and trade. Key topics include political leadership, innovation, impact measurement, and challenges such as inclusion and new economic indicators. A valuable primer for understanding how reshaped economic systems can address global challenges and better serve people, places, and the planet.
A Theory of Change articulates the link between intentions, activities, outputs, and outcomes. It presents a hypothesis of how we think we can create change in the world. This short video uses an example to explain how to use the tool to define goals and the pathways to reach them.
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This guide, supported by Highlands and Islands Enterprise, helps communities manage funds from renewable energy projects and other sources. It covers fund management models, practical steps for distribution, case studies, governance, and long-term sustainability. By providing best practices and real-world examples, it equips communities with the tools to reinvest in local initiatives, ensuring transparency, resilience, and long-term benefits.
This guide by Social Ventures Australia (SVA) helps organisations assess program suitability for the Australian Government’s $100 million Outcomes Fund. It outlines key funding criteria, evaluation methods, and practical guidance for securing outcomes-based contracts and social impact bonds (SIBs).
Landcare Australia empowers local communities to take action on environmental issues through conservation and sustainable agriculture. By supporting land restoration, revegetation, and sustainable farming, Landcare fosters community engagement and provides funding, training, and resources. The organisation also focuses on biodiversity conservation through collaborative projects that protect native species and ecosystems, ensuring long-term, sustainable environmental solutions.
This report by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship supports social enterprise leaders in tackling unique challenges like balancing social impact with commercial goals, managing diverse teams, and meeting stakeholder expectations. Grounded in global insights from interviews, case studies, and surveys, and developed with input from experienced social entrepreneurs, it offers practical, stage-specific guidance. Designed as a collaborative tool, it fosters knowledge sharing and equips leaders with strategies to drive mission-driven organisations effectively.
Dieter Helm’s video lecture series examines the steps needed for a sustainable economy, addressing polluter responsibility, resource maintenance, and investment, with detailed insights, downloadable slides, and an accompanying book.
On Monday 17 August 2020, the Australian Law Reform Commission co-hosted with the University of Melbourne a webinar with a panel of experts discussing the potential for a future ALRC inquiry into legal structures for social enterprises.
This foundational paper by Donella Meadows introduces 12 leverage points within systems where small interventions can drive significant change. It highlights the potential of paradigm shifts in addressing complex challenges, while acknowledging the resistance systems often present to such transformations.
Crafting a compelling pitch video can provide you with an excellent (and multi-use) resource. This guide shares tips for creating standout videos, different story arc models and advice for working with production agencies.
Discover Tyson Yunkaporta’s concept of “making embassy,” which fosters respectful, reciprocal, and meaningful relationships between people, groups, and systems. Rooted in Indigenous cultural practices, it emphasises relationality, shared purpose, cultural respect, and adaptability. Explore how this dynamic approach creates spaces for dialogue, collaboration, and the intersection of diverse knowledge systems.
This NextBillion article provides nine essential strategies for building strong management teams in social enterprises. It highlights the importance of fostering a high-performing culture, implementing supportive systems, and prioritising continuous learning. Key approaches include effective talent assessment, incremental onboarding, meeting management, and coaching skill development. The article emphasises how strong management is vital for scaling operations and achieving meaningful impact.
This Justice Connect guide outlines the key legal obligations organisations have towards volunteers. It provides practical examples, templates, and tips to help organisations navigate crucial areas, including the legal differences between volunteers, employees, and contractors; managing volunteer relationships; ensuring volunteer safety; addressing unlawful workplace behaviour; and handling intellectual property, privacy, and record-keeping issues.
The NDIS Co-Design Hub supports inclusive disability service design by involving people with disabilities and their families. It provides resources, case studies, and best practices to foster collaboration between participants, service providers, and policymakers.
The National Employment Services Association (NESA) is Australia's peak body for employment services, advocating for systemic improvements, workforce development, and inclusive hiring. It supports employment practitioners and promotes job access for disadvantaged groups.
A rich introduction to the history of measurement and how different drivers have informed how we think about, and practice, impact measurement and evaluation today. Also includes some useful graphics that help distinguish different terms and approaches from each other.
This guide by CSI explains what an outcomes fund is - a financing mechanism that pools funding to support organisations addressing social issues, with payments tied to achieving specific measurable outcomes. This guide by CSI shares more detail on what and who are usually involved in setting up and managing an outcomes fund.
This research paper by the Centre for Social Impact Flinders explores social supermarkets as an innovative model for addressing food insecurity. Combining affordable food access with social support, these supermarkets move beyond traditional food relief by integrating dignity, choice, and community connection. The paper highlights how social supermarkets offer a comprehensive approach, including financial, emotional, and skill-building services, fostering long-term independence and resilience for clients.
This article introduces participatory budgeting, a democratic process empowering citizens to influence public fund allocation. It covers its origins in Porto Alegre, Brazil, outlines key stages, and highlights benefits like transparency, trust, and community empowerment, making it an ideal resource for those exploring the concept.
This report by CSI Swinburne evaluates the Australian Government’s Payment by Outcomes (PBO) trial, which funds jobs-focused social enterprises based on employment outcomes. It assesses the impact on individuals facing work barriers, including those with disabilities, and explores the trial’s systemic and policy implications for employment services.
Permaculture Australia promotes sustainable living and growing practices through the principles of permaculture, tailored to Australia’s unique climate and ecosystems. The organisation provides education, training, and certification in permaculture design, supports local projects focused on food security and regenerative agriculture, and advocates for ecological and social resilience. By fostering self-sufficient, sustainable communities, Permaculture Australia helps communities work in harmony with the environment.
The Acumen Academy offers free online courses and resources for social entrepreneurs. Their blog series on fundraising and pitching social enterprises provides valuable insights for changemakers seeking to refine their pitching skills and increase their chances of securing support and funding.
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Platform Cooperatives Toolkit
PlatformsThe Platform Cooperatives Toolkit provides practical resources for building fair, worker-owned cooperatives in the digital economy. It includes step-by-step guides, case studies, and tools to promote equitable ownership and sustainable employment.
This blog delves into power through a systems change lens, emphasising its importance in tackling sustainability challenges. It redefines power as a relational dynamic rather than a static state, exploring shifts from “power over” to “power with” approaches. Key themes include privilege, systemic challenges like climate change and inequality, and the fractal nature of power across scales. Combining theoretical insights with practical strategies, it provides tools for minimising hierarchical power, fostering collaboration, and building capacity for transformative, inclusive decision-making.
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Prepare for funding, SEFA
ReportsCreated by SEFA, this guide outlines four key areas—Purpose, Plan, Profit, and Prudence—for social enterprises to focus on when preparing for funding.
This handbook helps you answer, ‘what problem are we really trying to solve with our social enterprise or project?’ Understanding this helps to find better solutions. This canvas and supporting guide offer a selection of tools to help you frame problems, recognise different types of problems, and open up opportunities for action.
Project Drawdown is a nonprofit organisation dedicated to identifying and scaling science-based solutions to combat climate change. Focused on equitable, safe, and effective approaches, the organisation conducts research, engages stakeholders, and promotes solutions to drive meaningful action. Through storytelling and collaboration, Project Drawdown shifts the narrative on climate change from despair to possibility, offering practical pathways for individuals and organisations to contribute to impactful climate action.
This article by Adam Kahane introduces ‘radical collaboration’ as a transformative approach to tackling systemic challenges. By integrating love, power, and justice, it fosters empathy, empowerment, and fairness among diverse stakeholders. This method aims to align differing interests and capacities, enabling inclusive and impactful systems change while navigating inherent tensions in collaboration.
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Raise Finance, BCCM
PlatformsThis guide offers essential insights into how social enterprises can expand funding beyond grants and donations by involving their community and members. This guide focusses on how you can achieve this by using a co-operative structure for your social enterprise.
This resource from the Australian Indigenous Governance Institute (AIGI) examines the significance of relationships in First Nations governance. It covers cultural, community, and environmental connections, balancing roles, building trust, and fostering effective partnerships. The guide also explores allyship, network expansion, and practical strategies for creating balanced, respectful collaborations within Indigenous communities and beyond.
SafeWork Australia offers resources for workplace health and safety, including psychosocial safety. Black Dog Institute supports mental health with free NSW training. Local SafeWork bodies, like SafeWork NSW, also provide helpful resources.
Seedkit
PlatformsSeedkit is a nationwide project and platform that helps social enterprises measure and communicate their impact. Its self-managed reporting platform allows social enterprises to measure, track, and communicate operations and impacts via customised dashboards and reports.
Self-determination is vital to the governance and aspirations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, enabling them to lead decision-making, exercise sovereignty, and build community-driven governance systems. This toolkit section outlines principles, pathways, and practical steps toward self-determination, including nation building, treaty processes, and sustainable development.
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