Our history
The Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship was launched in 2003 to advance the field of social entrepreneurship worldwide. Founded with a generous grant from the Skoll Foundation, the centre was established as an intellectual hub for social entrepreneurship within Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. Our originating goals were to:
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Provide support for faculty to develop the field of social entrepreneurship;
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Establish an MBA scholarship programme for social entrepreneurs around the world; and
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Host an annual social impact convening, bridging theory and practice.
In 2004, we welcomed the first Skoll Scholars to Saïd Business School and hosted the inaugural Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship. Two decades later, the centre’s founding principles and activities remain cornerstones of our work.
Our vision and mission
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We see a world where social change is driven by people who embrace paradox – bridging theory and practice, profit and purpose, local communities and global businesses – to find solutions and transform broken systems.
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Guided by this vision, our mission is to equip entrepreneurial leaders to catalyse social impact within and beyond business.
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We bring researchers and practitioners together to generate insights on how to lead, organise, finance, measure, and scale impact, and we incorporate these insights into learning programmes for entrepreneurial leaders at Oxford and worldwide.
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We define impact as systemic social change which is informed by theory and practice.
Our work
Over the past 20 years, the centre has become a hub for social entrepreneurship, innovation, and impact at the University of Oxford, and it is a driving force for the field worldwide. Jointly founded by the Skoll Foundation and Saïd Business School in 2003, the Skoll Centre was an early pioneer in establishing the field of social entrepreneurship and integrating social impact into management education and practice. From the beginning, we have worked at the intersection of research, education, and practice, and our impact spans all three areas.
Building on our success to date and looking ahead to the next 20 years, we are broadening our focus beyond social entrepreneurship to encompass fundamental processes required for systemic social change: leading and organising, financing, measuring, and scaling impact.
