Preface

The method used for assessing the social enterprises (SE) sector is arousing enormous attention in many countries as the momentum of social entrepreneurship gathers. This paper takes the approach of comparative analysis in assessment. It is because while absolute number is important, comparisons of numbers provide even more value in guiding decisions and future actions.

The first comparison is on the density of SEs in countries, calculated by the number of listed or registered SEs over the population in the country. While the absolute numbers are important, putting the numbers in ratios might show another picture. The comparison shows that Hong Kong has the highest SE density in Asia (see p. 9). Furthermore, the process of data collection found that not many countries maintain a directory of SEs. In other words, the presence of a regularly updated directory, and SE sector-wide data are another indication on the maturity of SE development.

The second and the main comparison is on the key performance indicators (KPIs) of Hong Kong’s (HK) SE sector to those of United Kingdom (UK) and of Korea. In doing so, we adopt a practical approach for assessment. The three KPIs used are (1) financial self-sustainability of the sector measured by the percentage of the SEs which is profitable or at breakeven; (2) scale of the SE sector measured by the total SE revenue divided by the GDP of the country; and (3) social impact generated.

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