Developing innovation routines in social enterprises: Evidence from a multi-activity support programme

This paper explores the role of support programmes in helping social enterprises (SEs) to develop innovation routines and capabilities. In doing so, it aims to contribute to addressing the lack of attention currently paid to the management of innovation in the social enterprise literature. It is based on evidence collected from a multi-activity support programme that was part of a major cross-regional European-funded project. This programme involved the participation of 75 SEs in a range of activities, including one-to-one coaching, specialist training, international visits, access to online resources and networks, and peer-based action learning. The main aim of the paper is to explore the varying implications of these different interventions for the development and/or transformation of innovation routines among the participating SEs. Distinguishing between agency-based, network-based, and informational forms of support, we argue that the disruptive or transformative capacity of each is different depending on the configuration of existing routines and capabilities, and the nature of the support interventions themselves.