Abstract

Colombia based ParqueSoft is a social entrepreneurship initiative by Orlando Rincón Bonilla (Orlando). ParqueSoft is a network of science and technology parks. It acts as incubators for young entrepreneurs from marginalized communities of Colombia. ParqueSoft’s incubation business model is unique as it required an entrepreneur to have an innovative product or solution to be eligible for availing its services. Entrepreneurs are provided with basic infrastructure and seed capital to start their organization within ParqueSoft. An informal work environment was maintained and organizations within ParqueSoft interacted with each other to solve their problems. Organizations are provided with services like marketing, legal, finance management, market research etc. which are non-core activities for a technology company. All the products developed in the company are branded as ParqueSoft’s products to cut costs of branding individual organizations. The company operated on a ‘pay-it-forward’ model where the major part of profits earned by the organizations in ParqueSoft is used to support new entrepreneurs and incubate more companies.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Get insights on a low cost model of incubating companies. Study an innovative social entrepreneurship initiative. Appreciate the importance of a sustainable business model for social entrepreneurs. Examine the benefits of collaborative approach in IT vent

Keywords

ParqueSoft, Social Entrepreneurship, Sustainable Business Model, Orlando Rincón Bonilla, Schwab Foundation, Marginalized Communities, Business Incubator, Social Inclusion, Very Small Enterprises, OpenManga, Pay-it-Forward Model, Business Philosophy, Strategic Alliances, Enterprise Development, E-Learning, Software Quality Assurance, Financial Strength, Venture Capital, Strategic Marketing Plan, Conceptualization of Opportunities, Colombian IT Sector, Colombian Economy