Strategies and Best Practices in Social Innovation, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2018 An Institutional Perspective

This book examines the different ways companies can develop and design social innovation. Combining technological and social perspectives, the contributors present emerging research on social innovation from different sectors such as entrepreneurship, education and energy. Collectively, the authors demonstrate the ways in which social innovation can drive sustainability and development in regions around the world.

All societies are characterized by their political, economic and social institutions, as well as by how they utilize technology. The social innovations with the highest importance are those which modify existing institutions or create new ones, and based on their magnitude, they can be considered as radical or incremental. For example, when Joseph Chamberlain encouraged workers to organize in order to achieve universal male suffrage in Great Britain in 1885, this was a considered a radical innovation for British society, which in turn changed its political framework. Social innovations may be based on intelligence and commitment, on technology or on social entrepreneurship in its most open forms. In addition, social innovations can be classified into those which correspond to an entire country or region, a field (e.g., education) or a sector (e.g., entrepreneurship, technology, social reform).

Featuring contributions on topics such as agro-food, smart cities, higher education, gender equality and sports, this book is ideal for academics, students, scholars, professionals and policy makers in the areas of innovation, entrepreneurship, sustainability and regional development.

Chapter 1: Strategies and Best Practices in Social Innovation: An Overview.- Chapter 2: Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation for Sustainability.- Chapter 3: Social Innovation in Public Organisations.- Chapter 4: Quality and Innovation in the Organic Agro-Food Sector.- Chapter 5: Sustainable Social Innovations in Smart Cities.- Chapter 6: The Economy of Communion as a Social Innovation to Humanise Business.- Chapter 7: Methodology for Analysing Electrical Scenarios as a Means of Sustainable Development in Emerging Countries.- Chapter 8: State Legitimacy in France as a Determinant of Competitiveness and Social Innovation.- Chapter 9: Developing Sustainability Awareness in Higher Education.- Chapter 10: Corporate Universities as a New Paradigm and Source of Social Innovation, Sustainability, Technology and Education in the Twenty-First Century.- Chapter 11: Finland’s Centennial Anniversary 2017 – the First 100 Years of Finnish Social Innovations that Work for GenderEquality.- Chapter 12: Innovation and Knowledge in the Social Economy: ICT Accessibility.- Chapter 13: Social Innovation in Sports.- Chapter 14: Management Systems for Sustainability Practices in the Wine Sector.

Marta Peris-Ortiz is Full Professor at Universitat Politècnica de València. She received her PhD in Management from the University of Valencia in 2005.

Her current research is focused on the topics of entrepreneurship, innovation, sustainability, corporate social responsibility and education innovation. She has published articles in journals such as Journal Business Research, Management Decision, Service Industries Journal, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Service Business, European Journal of International Management, Journal of International Change Management, International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, International Journal of Manpower, Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences and Non-Profit Management and Leadership among others, and is also a reviewer.

She has been Guest Editor of Management Decision, European Journal and International Management, Service Industries Journal, Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Small Business Economics and Journal of Knowledge Economy, among others. She is Associate Editor and on the editorial board of several journals of relevant international prestige. She has been President in different International Conferences and she has been executive secretary of the International Network of Business and Management Journals for five years.

Marta Peris-Ortiz has been co-editor of more than 20 books published by Springer. Since 2014, she has been a member of the DEVA agency evaluator group, responsible for evaluating degrees and masters in Andalucía (Spain).

Jaime Alonso Gómez has worked for a wide variety of organizations, across five continents, as a consultant, researcher and executive education facil