Qualitative analysis reveals three core mechanisms used by ecosystem intermediaries to scale social impact, highlighting scaling as a systemic organizational dynamic rather than an operational task.
This study presents the Identity-Systems-Narrative (ISN) Framework for modeling social ecosystem intermediaries. Based on a qualitative review of Ashoka, Echoing Green, Skoll, and Schwab, this design-oriented theory posits three interrelated mechanisms: (1) Identity Construction (social credentialing), (2) Systems Pivoting (shifting the focus from service provision to policy and market interventions) and (3) Narrative Amplification (embedding solutions within the elite discourses). This research frames scaling as an organizational system dynamic rather than an operational construct. Using an interpretative approach, the study analyses public organizational communications as narratives to deliver a complex, non-linear theory of systemic social entrepreneurship.
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Venkataramana Karri (2026) studied this question.
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