ENTERPRISE FOR SOCIAL IMPACT - 2027/8

Module Overview

This module introduces students to social value creation within the context of business activity, with particular attention to social enterprises and other forms of purpose-driven organisations. It explores how organisations can pursue both economic value and social or environmental impact, and how this dual value creation influences business models, financial sustainability, and strategic decision-making. 

Through a combination of lectures and collaborative learning activities, students will engage with applied challenges situated in real-world or simulated contexts. Working in teams, they will examine a societal or environmental issue, consider business-oriented responses, and explore the opportunities and tensions involved in balancing commercial objectives with social impact. Emphasis is placed on understanding the role of social impact measurement and communication in articulating social value, supporting organisational credibility, and enabling effective engagement with markets, investors, and wider society. 

The module encourages engagement with external perspectives where appropriate and provides opportunities for students to communicate their ideas to academic and non-academic audiences, fostering an integrated understanding of responsible and sustainable business practice.

Module provider

Surrey Business School

Module Leader

MURZACHEVA Ekaterina (SBS)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 5

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 2

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None

Module content

• The module introduces key concepts and debates surrounding social value creation within business and enterprise contexts, with particular attention to how organisations address societal and environmental challenges. It explores different organisational forms and governance approaches, examining how mission and stakeholder priorities shape value creation and performance. 
• The module considers business and financial models that support dual value creation, focusing on the relationship between commercial viability, impact objectives, and decision-making under conditions of risk and uncertainty. 
• Students engage with opportunity recognition and creative problem-solving, developing enterprise responses informed by market awareness, stakeholder needs, ethical considerations, and intellectual property issues. The module also introduces approaches to measuring and communicating social impact, highlighting their role in accountability, legitimacy, and stakeholder engagement. 
• Throughout, emphasis is placed on collaboration, stakeholder interaction, and effective communication. Students are encouraged to adopt a forward-looking perspective, including environmental scanning, strategic thinking, and reflection on future challenges and opportunities in responsible and sustainable business practice.

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

Individual project.

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to: The assessment strategy provides students with the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to integrate theoretical understanding with applied enterprise practice in the context of social value creation and purpose-driven business. In particular, the assessment strategy is designed to enable students to demonstrate: 

• Understanding and application of social value creation, including the ability to analyse how organisations balance economic, social, and environmental objectives, and to develop creative, viable business-oriented responses to societal or environmental challenges. 
• Evidence-based and financially informed decision-making, demonstrated through researching and critically analysing academic, market, and practice-based evidence, and evaluating business and financial models in relation to sustainability, risk, uncertainty, and social impact measurement. 
• Effective communication and reflective engagement, including the ability to communicate ideas clearly to academic and non-academic audiences using appropriate media, engage constructively with stakeholders, and reflect on feedback and collaboration to inform future development. 

The assessment approach emphasises authentic and applied learning, enabling students to engage with real or simulated organisational contexts and stakeholders, and to demonstrate the development of enterprise, analytical, and professional skills aligned with responsible and sustainable business practice. Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of: 

1. Group project (presentation) - 50%: addresses learning outcomes 1, 2, 4 and 5. 2. 

2. Individual coursework - 50%: addresses learning outcomes 1, 3 and 5. 

Formative assessment is embedded throughout the module to support learning and development. This includes tutor-led feedback during workshops, peer feedback on developing ideas, and opportunities to test concepts through discussion, draft pitches, or interim activities. Engagement with real or simulated stakeholders, where appropriate, also provides informal feedback to help students refine their thinking, decision-making, and communication prior to summative assessment. 

Students will receive ongoing feedback throughout the module through a range of formative and informal mechanisms designed to support their development and inform the summative assessments. Verbal feedback is provided during lectures and workshops through discussion of ideas, problem-solving activities, and tutor guidance. Students receive peer feedback on developing pitches, or interim tasks as part of collaborative activities. Where real or simulated stakeholders are involved, students may also receive feedback on the clarity, feasibility, and impact of their ideas. This feedback supports reflection, enables students to identify areas for improvement, and informs preparation for the final summative assessments.

Module aims

• To develop students' understanding of social value creation within business activity, with particular attention to how organisations balance economic objectives with social or environmental impact.
• To enable students to analyse and design business and financial models that support dual value creation, recognising the opportunities, constraints, and trade-offs involved in pursuing both commercial viability and social impact.
• To equip students with the ability to evaluate and communicate social impact, including an understanding of how impact measurement supports organisational legitimacy, stakeholder engagement, and responsible decision-making.

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to develop students¿ understanding of social value creation within business and enterprise contexts by integrating theoretical knowledge with applied learning. It supports the development of analytical, creative, and enterprising capabilities through engagement with real-world or simulated challenges, while encouraging active learning, collaboration, and reflective practice to inform decision-making under conditions of uncertainty. The strategy also fosters awareness of contemporary issues in responsible and sustainable business practice and builds students¿ confidence in communicating ideas, developing relationships, and engaging effectively with a range of academic and non-academic audiences. 

The learning and teaching methods include: 

• Learning and teaching are delivered through a blended and interactive approach that supports the development of analytical, creative, and applied enterprise skills. 
• The module combines lectures with workshops and collaborative learning activities to introduce key concepts and enable their application to real-world or simulated contexts. 
• Applied learning is supported through case-based activities, enterprise challenges, and stakeholder-focused tasks, including engagement with real or simulated external stakeholders where appropriate. 
• Students work both individually and in teams to explore societal and environmental challenges and develop business-oriented responses. 
• Independent study and research underpin learning, supported by digital resources and learning technologies that facilitate flexible engagement and communication using a range of formats and media. 
• Formative feedback is embedded throughout the module through tutor input, peer discussion, and reflective activities.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: MAN2226

Other information

Entrepreneurship & Innovation Discipline (Surrey Business School, BSc Business Management (Entrepreneurship and Innovation) is committed to developing graduates with strengths in Employability, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities, Sustainability, and Resourcefulness and Resilience. This module is designed to allow students to develop knowledge, skills, and capabilities in the following areas: 

Digital capabilities: Students develop digital capabilities through the use of digital tools and platforms to research markets and stakeholders, analyse data, collaborate in teams, and communicate ideas using appropriate media, including digital presentations and online resources. 

Employability: The module enhances employability by developing enterprise, analytical, financial, and communication skills through applied, practice-based learning. Engagement with real or simulated stakeholders supports professional behaviours, teamwork, problem-solving, and presentation skills relevant to a range of business and enterprise careers. 

Global and cultural capabilities: Students engage with societal and environmental challenges that operate across different markets and contexts, developing awareness of diverse stakeholder perspectives, ethical considerations, and cultural influences on business and social impact. 

Resourcefulness and Resilience: The module supports resourcefulness and resilience by encouraging opportunity recognition, creative problem-solving, and decision-making under uncertainty. Students develop adaptability and reflective practice through collaborative work, feedback, and iterative development of ideas. 

Sustainability: Sustainability is central to the module, with a focus on social and environmental impact, responsible business practice, and long-term value creation. Students explore how organisations balance economic viability with sustainable outcomes through business and financial models and impact measurement.

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2027/8 academic year.