Collecting Data on Social Enterprises 2025

Executive summary Improving the quality, consistency and comparability of social enterprise data can enhance the understanding of social enterprises and amplify their impact. Social enterprises play a crucial role in driving inclusive and sustainable economic growth worldwide. These organizations, which prioritize social and environmental impact over profit, vary widely in structure and purpose – from small, community-driven businesses to large-scale enterprises addressing systemic challenges. However, despite their growing significance, the availability of reliable and comparable data on social enterprises remains inconsistent across regions. Addressing these data gaps is critical for governments, businesses, investors and ecosystem enablers to develop informed policies, foster investment and create a supportive environment for social enterprises to thrive. Recognizing the need for better data, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has established the Advisory Group on Social Enterprise Data, a collaborative platform comprising experts from industry, academia, the public sector and the private sector. The group’s mission is to improve the quality, consistency and comparability of social enterprise data worldwide, beginning with demographic data collected through surveys. Surveys have long been the primary tool for gathering social enterprise data. As a widely used methodology, they form the foundation of many research initiatives undertaken by governments, membership organizations and funders. However, despite their prevalence, challenges remain in ensuring data comparability due to differences in definitions, research methodologies and question formats across studies. To address this, the advisory group mapped over 30 surveys, analysing more than 700 questions to identify common themes and areas for alignment. This analysis revealed eight key categories of social enterprise data: 1. Basic identifying information. 2. Organizational characteristics. 3. Workforce and leadership demographics.4. Social and environmental goals. 5. Financial performance and economic impact. 6. Barriers and challenges. 7. Operational practices and behaviours. 8. General sentiment and future outlook. To support data harmonization efforts, the advisory group has developed a set of standardized survey questions, published separately on the website of the Global Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship.1 These questions serve as a practical resource for organizations collecting social enterprise data, facilitating alignment across different research initiatives. This playbook on social enterprise data collection, informed by the advisory group’s work, provides guidance for practitioners on effectively designing and conducting surveys. It covers five interlinked steps: defining the purpose of data collection, co-designing surveys, collecting data, storing data securely and publishing findings. While surveys remain a valuable tool, the playbook also explores their limitations and introduces complementary methodologies, such as integrating government records, member network data and information in the public domain. As the landscape of social enterprise data collection continues to evolve, collaboration and alignment among stakeholders will be essential. By working together to improve data quality and availability, the global community can enhance the understanding of social enterprises and amplify their impact on economies and societies worldwide. Access the standardized set of survey questions here Collecting Data on Social Enterprises: A Playbook for Practitioners 4