I have always been interested in the idea of doing business for social good. My career started in the private sector, not out of considered choice, but from what was available at the time. By the time I finished college at 18, having lived on my own for two years, I needed a job. I took a role at a local wine shop, first as a shop assistant and progressing on to manage it.
There, I found my passion for helping staff to progress, and knew from the challenges I had experienced growing up, that it was important for me that my work benefited others. Qualifying as a coach, I explored my own values realising that actually my heart was in the voluntary and community sector. When I was in my mid-twenties I took a role with the Prince's Trust that changed my view of social enterprise forever.
Working with a fantastic group of young people, who were interested in setting up their own youth café, gave me insight into the community benefit that could be achieved by such an initiative. Along with this, there was the personal benefit that the young organisers gained; from business planning to budgeting, market research to communication skills. It was inspiring to be involved and I learned at least as much, if not more, than the young people I was supporting.
I decided at that point that I wanted to set up my own social enterprise, although I had more questions than answers and felt that it would be something for ten or twenty years' time. In the meantime, in my early thirties, I took a role at York Council For Voluntary Service, giving me experience of training in the voluntary sector. Being aware of the need for quality training, coaching and nationally recognised qualifications to professionalise the voluntary and community sector, I saw the importance of gaining a teaching qualification.
Then my daughter was born and suddenly I had the impetus to develop my ideas. Maternity leave gave me an opportunity to plot and plan, along with the determination to do something that my daughter would be proud of. I sketched a business plan and spoke to my contacts, explained my ideas and looked for directors. It actually took far longer than I imagined to get the right people involved who could help me develop the plan into a viable business. Firstly, I needed a year to find people with the necessary expertise to develop the business, and then a further five months to get clear enough on our structure and objectives to register with the CIC regulator.
Ultimately, our aim was finalised: 'We passionately believe in the capability of organisations, individuals and communities to develop and progress. Our aim is to work with others to make this a reality.'
Since then, we haven't looked back. We have had excellent opportunities to work across sectors including delivering sessions for the Leeds, York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, and developing networking workshops to help people across sectors develop their confidence and skills.
We have learned a lot about the time it takes to get things started, developed and completed. I often have ideas and expect them to be able to materialise immediately. I thought that having my own business would automatically mean I would be able to get things done quickly. It has taken patience and belief in the cause to see these plans become a reality in their own time.
The successes I am most proud of have been involving a diverse range of volunteers in our courses, giving them opportunities they would not otherwise have had, on an equal footing with senior staff from different sectors, which has been a learning experience for all involved. I was humbled by a couple of volunteers who really challenged their views of themselves and their abilities in order to take part in an accredited course and really shone. It makes all the hard work worthwhile.
My biggest personal challenge has been delegating appropriately. When we started, I wanted to be able to do as much as I could myself. It has taken me a little while to realise that the skills other people have can save me a lot of time and money, and it is far more cost effective for me to outsource aspects such as administration and accounting than struggling with it myself.
My top tips for starting a social enterprise are:
1. Make sure you are really clear about who your business will benefit. When the going gets tough, it is great to have examples of real people that have benefited to keep you motivated and on track.
One of our first courses involved two volunteers who gained an vast amount of benefit from the sessions, with not only the certificate at the end, but also paid work as a direct result of doing the course. When generating business has been more challenging, I have reminded myself of these learners and the importance of the work we are doing for the individuals who take part and this has spurred me on.
2. Be aware it is a long-term commitment. It commonly takes several years to become properly established but the patience and tenacity is worth it!
I love having ideas and believed that if I was running my own business that I would be able to get things moving far quicker than when working for an employer. The reality has been that some things take longer. In terms of finding directors it took longer than I imagined but, as Jim Collins says in his book Good to Great, 'getting the right people on the bus' had significant benefits.
3. Network across sectors to help you develop your personal skills; the contacts that you can ask for support, advice or ideas, and to open your mind to new possibilities for your products and services. I have gained so much insight about growing a business from attending networking events and finding out how other people have done it. People in different industries approach things in different ways, and I now have a diverse network of people that I can go to when I want advice about developing new services. I feel I am now more professional and clear about how to market our services to different sectors as a result.
4. Be open to your own development. Businesses often expand in proportion to our own skills and experience, and occasionally we can be the very thing that is holding our business back. People approach social enterprises from different perspectives and for different reasons. It is an opportunity for us to develop and benefit as much as it is an opportunity to offer community benefit to others.
I have done a fair amount of research into marketing and how to attract people onto open courses. This has been hugely beneficial and resulted in many more people taking part in our sessions. I have also got a better of understanding of what to delegate and to whom, as it is impossible to do it all as business develops. Having systems that we can all access from different places has also been invaluable.
Charlie Mitchell is the founding director of Creating Space For You (CIC), a social enterprise that offers a range of training, coaching and development that benefits the voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors. Courses include coaching skills, leadership development, networking skills, along with conference facilitation and world café style events. Contact Charlie on LinkedIn and on Twitter @creatingspace4u
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