Entrepreneurship in the Social Sector

Jane Wei-Skillern is an Assistant Professor of Business Administration in the General Management Unit and Social Enterprise Group at the Harvard Business School. She teaches her MBA elective, Entrepreneurship in the Social Sector at Harvard Business School and the Kennedy School of Government. She also teaches in the HBS Social Enterprise executive education program, Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management (SPNM). Professor Wei-Skillern earned her B.S. in Business from the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, an M.A. in Business Research and a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior, both from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. Prior to joining the faculty at Harvard, she was an Assistant Professor of Organizational Behavior at London Business School.

Professor Wei-Skillern′s research is focused in the field of Social Enterprise. Her research has examined the topics of nonprofit growth and management of multisite nonprofits, and most recently has been focused on nonprofit networks. She is currently studying how building a range of strategic networks can be a powerful lever for nonprofits to achieve greater social impact. A strategic network is distinguished from traditional partnership approaches in that it entails a shift in mindset from the organization as the hub for social value creation, to the organization as a node within a larger network of critical and complementary entities that must work collaboratively to achieve mission impact. Her research explores how trust based strategic networks that leverage resources in innovative ways to achieve mission impact can be created and managed.

Dr. Austin is the Eliot I. Snider and Family Professor of Business Administration Emeritus at the Harvard Business School. Previously he held the John G. McLean Professorship and the Richard Chapman Professorship. He has been a member of the Harvard University faculty since 1972. He was the Co-Founder and Chair of the HBS Social Enterprise Initiative. Prof. Austin has been the author, co-author, or editor of 16 books. He has taught courses on Entrepreneurship in the Social Sector, Governance of Nonprofit Organizations, Management in Developing Countries, Agribusiness, Business Ethics, International Business, Business-Government Relations, Marketing, Nutrition Policy, and Case Method Teaching. In addition to Harvard, Dr. Austin has taught and advised managers, government officials, and graduate students throughout the world.

He earned his Doctor of Business Administration and Master of Business Administration from Harvard University with Distinction; Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Michigan with High Distinction, and was elected to Beta Gamma Sigma. Dr. Austin has been the author or editor of 16 books, dozens of articles, and over a hundred case studies on business and nonprofit organizations. His prior research focused primarily on management problems in developing countries, agribusiness, and nutrition policy. His current research deals with social enterprises with emphasis on the creation, management, and governance of nonprofit organizations, and on the role of business leaders and corporations in the social sector.

Herman B. ("Dutch") Leonard is Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and the George F. Baker, Jr. Professor of Public Sector Management at Harvard University′s John F. Kennedy School of Government. In addition, he serves as faculty co-chair of the HBS Social Enterprise Initiative. He teaches extensively in executive programs at the Business School and the Kennedy School and around the world in the areas of general organizational strategy, governance, performance management, crisis management and leadership, and corporate social responsibility. His work on leadership focuses on innovation, creativity, effective decision-making, and advocacy and persuasion. His current work in leadership and management is focused on the relationships among governance, accountability, and performance, and emphasizes the use of performance management as a tool for enhancing accountability. He has also worked and taught extensively in the area of crisis management and on issues related to corporate social responsibility. Professor Leonard is a member of the Board of Directors of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, a 900,000-member Massachusetts HMO, of the Hitachi Foundation, and of the ACLU of Massachusetts. He was for a decade a member of the board of directors of the Massachusetts Health and Educational Facilities Authority and of Civic Investments, and was a member of the Massachusetts Commission on Performance Enhancement.

Howard Stevenson is the Sarofim-Rock Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, Senior Associate Dean, Director of Publication Activities, and the Vice Provost for Harvard University Planning and Resources. A member and former chair of the Entrepreneurial Management Unit, he has served as the School’s Senior Associate Dean and Director of External Relations, chair of the Latin American Faculty Advisory Group, Senior Associate Dean and Director of Financial and Information Systems, and faculty chair of Executive Education’s Owner/President Manager (OPM) Program. Professor Stevenson’s research focuses on the life patterns that create enduring success, entrepreneurship and predictability. He has authored or coauthored more than 150 case studies, numerous articles, and nine books―including Just Enough: Tools for Creating Success in Your Work and Life (with L. Nash) and, Make Your Own Luck: 12 Practical Steps to Taking Smarter Risks in Business (with E. Shapiro). He has created several successful companies. Currently he is a director of Camp Dresser & McKee and Landmark Communications. He is a director of National Public Radio, a Trustee of the Massachusetts chapter of The Nature Conservancy, Mt. Auburn Hospital, and Trustee Emeritus of The Boston Ballet. He served as Director and President of The Sudbury Valley Trustees.