Social Innovation: Russian Experience of Business Enterprise

What is the firm «Socinnovatsiya» like? It is a «giant of contemporary CIS which comprises 64 branches and services spread throughout the whole territory of the former Soviet Union.

A giant whose major, but not the only activity is a conversion of the huge military-industrial complexes of yesterday's USSR into civil complexes of today's CIS», — writes journal «Manager» of February — March 1993.

It is «a development of YRC (Youth Residential Complexes) network where an idea of creation of happy youth settlements sprang up, where a comfortable life is being built with their own hands alongside walls and the roof», — remarks journal «Social Work» № 1, 1992.

It is a novative centre of international level whose activity is targeted not only at collecting social novations or carrying out expertise, but rather at organizing implementation, in other words at getting a «swift socially significant effect», — writes «Ecological Newspaper» № 8, 1991.

The firm «Socinnovatsiya» started its activity in 1989 as a state-owned scientific, consultative and implementing one under the umbrella of the USSR Ministry of Labour and Social Problems. For a short period of time the Firm's employees managed to unite and consolidate social innovators from the most diverse spheres of our life. Here people of various professions found understanding and a possibility to implement their creative ideas. They are: pedagogues and medical specialists, psycho-therapeutists and economists, architects and, constructors, industrial, cultural and sports employees, those from social protection

Imagine the situation - you are offered to implement in your enterprise (organization), organizational and technical measures, each of them has the following advantages:

- Promotes better health, getting rid of a number of diseases.

- Replaces a range of basic food products (in whole or in part) without compromising their culinary properties, and introduces a variety of domestic and public cooking.

- Saves the company's budget and staff. At the same time return the introduction of each such event does not exceed a month.

The question is: Is it advantageous to implement each of these technical measures? The answer means "yes." Now imagine that all these three activities are carried out by one. It is such a thing we offer for implementation. It is concluded as follows: the production of natural soy products with small soy installaitions CM-30 or SM-R (MRS) is organizing in the enterprise (organization). Worldwide, this new generation of food is sure gaining market, accounting for more than 30% of products consumed by the population.

In the U.S., these products have a special status - healthy snacks, since their consumption is achieved not only the effect of caloric content diet, but a significant health effect. And the cost of these products several times (and even tens of times) lower than the cost of their animal counterparts.

As a result of the international exhibition "EkoProdEkspo-2003" we have won the first prizes in the categories: Best eco-product "and" Best of eco-technology ", as well as the Grand Prix of the exhibition.