Social Enterprises & B Corps: Dr. Maria Ballesteros-Sola on Rethinking Capitalism

Dr. Maria Ballesteros-Sola, Associate Professor of Management at the MVS School of Business & Economics and Director of the Entrepreneurship & Small Business Institute, joins the conversation to share insights from her research, “The Hybrid Organization Advantage: Lessons from Social Enterprises and B Corps.” She discusses how hybrid organizations and certified B Corps effectively balance profit with purpose, revealing the strategies and structures that enable them to achieve strong financial results while creating meaningful social impact. In this episode, Dr. Maria Ballesteros-Sola, Associate Professor of Management at the MVS School of Business & Economics and Director of the Entrepreneurship & Small Business Institute, shares her journey from a successful career in financial services and consulting across Spain, London, and Boston to becoming a leading scholar of hybrid organizations. She reflects on the deep values disconnect she experienced while maximizing shareholder returns by day and volunteering with non-profits at night, a tension that set the stage for her later research. A turning point came in 2010, when a new social business minor and a visit from Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus revealed that business could be a powerful force for social good, inspiring her 16-year commitment to studying models that blend profit and purpose. Drawing on this work, she explains how hybrid organizations use market-based solutions to create social value, why B Corp certification provides much-needed clarity to the “fuzzy middle” of social business, and how some enterprises are “born hybrid,” weaving commercial and social logics together from inception rather than treating them as competing priorities. This podcast is brought to you by Global Management Consultancy. For more information, please visit www.globalmanagementconsultancy.com. Disclaimer: A. The background music used in this video is the property of its respective developer and is protected by Copyright. Although it is a free version, Business Talk, Global Management Consultancy and Deepak Bhatt do not hold the rights to this music. B. Dr. Maria Ballesteros-Sola shared profound insights from her research, “The Hybrid Organization Advantage: Lessons from Social Enterprises and B Corps,” during an engaging conversation on the Business Talk podcast channel. The uploaded video contains copyrighted material; therefore, any modifications to graphics, music, or the presence of the author or host are strictly prohibited.