Fair and equitable digital literacy and technology education: addressing the education gap through social entrepreneurship

Purpose This study examines two small social enterprises – a social business and a non-profit – founded by the same entrepreneur that provide digital literacy and technology education in the Netherlands. By comparing two distinct social enterprise models and their approaches to equitable supplemental education, the paper explores the relationships among entrepreneurial logics, organizational practices and external stakeholder involvement, including the role of government. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on three years of qualitative case study research involving interviews, observations and secondary data, the research investigates how social enterprises deliver digital literacy and technology education in a low-resource context. The analysis combines frameworks from entrepreneurship and education to examine differences in entrepreneurial logics, organizational characteristics and stakeholder engagement. Findings Schools, libraries and technology companies are critical to both enterprises, providing legitimacy, facilities and financial support. The social business primarily relies on consumer-side stakeholder engagement and adapts internally to improve accessibility, while the non-profit adapts externally through partnerships to broaden access. Both organizations demonstrate effectual entrepreneurial logic through stakeholder involvement, institutional collaboration and adaptive experimentation under resource constraints. The study highlights the need for further research incorporating a wider range of stakeholder perspectives and assessing long-term outcomes. Originality/value The study contributes a comparative analysis of two social enterprise forms operating within a decentralized educational context. The research underscores the value of hybrid funding models, structured cross-sector partnerships and differentiated evaluation frameworks. It demonstrates how effectuation can help address educational inequalities through resourcefulness, experimentation and collaborative innovation.