During his time at SEF, Stefan constantly provided enormous value by bringing people together with his fresh and warm hearted appearance. Stefan started his own Social Business, a few months ago, and therefore must be showcased as “Best Practice”. One of the SEFs goals is to provide people with knowledge & passion to change by founding and leading own projects.

Find out more about Stefan’s Social Business: www.refugeescode.at

“Most inspiring while being with SEF were the people around me. First at the event, when I was a guest, and then the team members. The spirit and the motivation of the people were  contagious to me. I got to know various people at events and meetings who really strive for change. SEF has inspired me to found a Social Business myself.”

Christine started SEF together with her colleagues out of a crazy mood in order to inspire people to change the conventional ways of thinking about business. Too rarely do we talk about social or ecological aspects next to profits and growth. With SEF, she contributed to the spread of social entrepreneurship at WU but also beyond and showcases that this is also a viable career path. Now she is active in similar areas at Impact Hub Vienna and supports social entrepreneurs to make the (business) world a better place.

“SEF showed me that many people do want change, however, many times they are missing this one spark or even the platform in order to become active. With SEF we have built such a platform and I am very glad to see how it continues to spread its sparks.”

In the future companies will be judged by how much added value they create for customers without exhausting man and nature, says Markus. Early Adopters will enjoy a competitive advantage. With this mindset, he joined SEF in 2016, where he participated in brand development and thus gave the club more digital visibility. As he proceeds professionally he now wants to combine his acquired skills in digital storytelling, sustainability and entrepreneurship.

“Besides the fact that SEF enables its members to learn different tools, SEF was above all a place that always helped to adjust my own” visions of life “. It was not hard to be inspired by the people involved and the appreciation they showed.”

Jana co-founded SEF and spent three years working in various organizational areas. In addition to the ongoing planning and implementation of social entrepreneurship events, she took responsibility for the internal team building and the website. Since August 2018, she has been enrolled in the masters programme „Master in Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability“ in Karlskrona, Sweden (www.msls.se).

“For me, SEF marks the beginning of an inexpressibly beautiful and fulfilling journey. Through my work at SEF, I have not only learned more than in any internship, but also figured out what my place in society can be. SEF attracts incredibly exciting personalities! It is now time for me to carry this spirit out into the world.”

Franziska simply thinks the concept of social entrepreneurship is genius and the people behind it are even more genius. She co-founded SEF to inspire business students in particular to rethink their approach. During her time at SEF she was responsible for branding, strategy and partnerships. Today Franziska works as Consultant at Boston Consulting Group. Also there she emits sparks as co-organiser for the social impact initiative in the Vienna office. 

“Imagine the future will bring more social entrepreneurs. People, that change the world, but in a sustainable way. We as SEF believe in this future. I am proud of SEF, because we can say: Yes, the future will be wonderful, and it’s our fault.”

During his active time at SEF Marc was co-responsible for partnerships and sponsoring. Here he advocated to also bring our vision to important Austrian decision makers. The highlight of his activity at SEF was definitely his participation in the Open Innovation Workshop of the Federal Ministry of Science Research and Economy (BMWFW).

“It doesn’t matter whether you are looking for personal, professional or amicable ties – SEF Vienna is more than just an organisation where people network. You will find a space where remarkable people with distinct abilities join forces together in order to discuss a common vision with partners from politics, economy and science: Make Social Business the standard – Creating a better world for all of us.”

When Bianca began her bachelor’s degree at Vienna University of Economics and Business, she experienced first-hand the lack of focus on social entrepreneurship and its’ values, as well as the missing communication of the high potential behind it. During her time at SEF, she wanted to engage with this challenge and contribute that business students perceive Social Entrepreneurship as viable option in the future. Bianca was involved in strategy planning, social media and marketing. Since September 2018 she has been studying for her Master in “Organisational Innovation and Entrepreneurship” at Copenhagen Business School (https://www.cbs.dk/).

“Of which I benefited the most out of my time at SEF, is the possibility to try out new things and be surrounded by great like-minded and inspiring people the same time. It definitely has broadened my perspectives on social entrepreneurship and was a fulfilling work experience for me.”