JFCS Takes Entrepreneurial Approach

Opportunity in crises
"But crisis creates urgency," Friedman said, noting that the incoming Reagan Administration would further cut funding. "The best time to make changes is when there's urgency."

Jim Schorr, a lecturer at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business who has taught classes on the social enterprise movement, said when Friedman's organization adopted the model in the early 1980s, the concept was still controversial. Adopting a business approach could distract from an institution's social mission, critics feared. And turning to the private sector for funding could lead to tangled agendas and potential conflicts of interest.