E.D.S. Enterprise services to development Equal Project n. IT-IT-G2-LAZ-002

E.D.S. Enterprise services to developmentEqual Project n. IT-IT-G2-LAZ-002 Social cooperatives in the Province of Rome AbstractMade by ERIFO Leader: EFET National Partners: IMU CISFEL CIR ERIFO PRAGUE, october 2007

E.D.S. The partnership • “E.D.S. Enterprise services to development” (pr. cod. IT-IT-G2-LAZ-002 ) is a project coordinated by EFET – TRAINING BODY OF ETRURIA. The partners are: ERIFO – a research and training body, IMU - International Multimedia University Spa, CIR – Research Interregional Consortium, CISFEL – International Center for Work Development and Training.

The Project foresees 3 actions. • 1. The first phase consists of an enquiry targeted to all the Social Companies belonging to Rome and the Province of Rome. The enquiry aims to analyze their training needs in terms of quality and social responsibility, and it is finalized to the setting up of training and professional retraining services tailored to the exigencies of social companies. The output of this phase will be a training offer, that all the social companies will be able to use free via e-learning.

2. The second phase foresees a study of the modalities of entrusting of services to social companies, from SMEs and local public services enterprises. This study will focus in particular on the criteria adopted by the contracting bodies for the entrusting of job orders to social companies. Particular attention will be paid to the analysis of the criteria of tenders and of entrusting that consider the added value brought by social companies, especially in terms of quality and sociality of the services they provide.

3. The third phase represents an operative synthesis of the previous ones. The activation of a Social Network for Local Development will be stated on the bases of the studied implemented. This network will represent a link between the social development actors belonging to the profit and no profit sectors. The aim of the social network will be to attain the signature of an agreement protocol, that is a formal engagement of all the institutional, economical and social actors to adopt a system of public and private tenders based on quality criteria, and that considers the social contribution that organizations belonging to the third sector are able to bring.

Now the first phase is under implementation. In particular we are analyzing the gathered data related to training needs. This phase is implemented by ERIFO in cooperation with EFET (the project leader). The social companies that answered to the questionnaire (40) will be able to benefit for free from training and retraining courses (with distance assistance). Moreover, such companies will be have the opportunity to become members of the Social network for local development.

The sample • The sample is mainly made of A kind cooperatives (45%), that are companies that, according to the law 381/91, manage socio-sanitary and educational services. The B kind cooperatives, the ones finalized to work insertion of disadvantaged persons, represent the 35% of the interviewed sample. Finally, the 15% of the sample is made of mixed kind social cooperatives. • The 90% of interviewed companies is inscribed to the prefectorial register, and the same percentage to the regional register. • For what concerns productive sectors, the sample mainly works in the field of socio-charitable rehabilitation (30.0%), of tutelage and valorization of nature and environment (25.0%) and in the socio-sanitary field (20.0%). It is important to underline that only some companies are multi-service ones, that is that they work in different sectors.

Seniority • The cooperative field has an high seniority. The 42.1% of companies has been established before the 1990 year. The period comprised between the 1996 and the 1999 has been the most “fruitful” for what concerns the setting up of social companies. In that period the 47.2% of social cooperatives that now are active was born. As regards to the kind of companies, the oldest are the A kind cooperatives.

The partners • For what concerns the number of partners, it is important to underline that the interviewed cooperatives, with the passing of time, have strongly enlarged own team. The cooperatives that at the start-up was made of 9 partners were the 60%, now only the 28% of the companies maintains such numerousness.

The working partners • The capability to engage working forces increases together with the development of the company. At the start-up the 3% of the companies could count on more that 20 working partners; that percentage increases to the 15% in the moment in which the survey was made.

The disadvantaged partners • The numerousness of disadvantaged partners increases together with the consolidation of company development. The cooperatives that at the start-up did not have any disadvantaged member were the 34%, now they are only the 24% of the sample.

The non partners • Following the figures related to the engagement of partners, also the capability to co-opt non partners increases together with companies’ ageing.

Conclusions • So this sector presents an occupational dynamic that is basically positive. This sector attracts an increasing number of workers, compensating for the problem of turn-over, that always worries the observers of this sector.

The involvement • The involvement of members – or of a part of them – in the critical decisions for cooperative’s life is guaranteed in almost all the interviewed companies (98,9%). Moreover, the half of cases (50.7%) foresee the involvement of the majority of members.

The decisions • In the interviewed companies the most important decisions for cooperative’s life are taken by the Board of directors (51.4%) and by the Assembly of members (35.3%). The president, that in the 83% of the cases coincides with the leader, autonomously decides only in 1 case on 10.

Conclusions • The interviewed companies are characterized by an high proximity of their members to the decisional bodies. This is one of the key values of these companies. • Workers assign strong importance to their involvement in the organization and in the critical decision making processes.

Internal training • Internal training seems to be an important drive for the development of cooperative companies. Among the enterprises of the sample, only the 2% didn’t organize any training course for own employees during the past 2 years.

Training of disadvantaged persons • The percentage of companies that implemented internal training courses also for disadvantaged persons is the 88.4%. This percentage is very high, and it underlines how much this kind of companies strongly protect own human resources and social capital.

Conclusions • So, according to the results of such enquiry, it is possible to affirm that the evolutionary drive of the cooperatives mainly belongs to two forces: an increasing in their dimension and an increasing in the complexity the have to manage. On the other hand, in general terms, an increasing dimension implies a greater complexity, and so the need of an increasing specialization of the staff. The cooperatives have learned to face this issues through training.

The perceived problems • Among the various aspects perceived as the most important, the maximum uncertainty, in the past but even more nowadays, attains to the relationships with public institutions. If we consider that the main share of the companies develops own turnover thanks to public bodies, the consequence is that the main uncertainty attains to the economic trend of own company.

Classification of the problems Classifying the problems that mostly worry the interviewed companies, we have: • Firstly, as previously underlined, the relationships with public institutions; • Secondly, the management of the staff; • Thirdly, the access to public funds.

Towards optimism • If, on one side, the sector seems to be worried about the uncertainty of public funds, on the other side it seems serene for what concerns the access to the market of the so called “paying demand”. This aspect worried the 17% of companies at their start-up, but now only the 11% of the sample.

The strategies • The results of this enquiry delineate a division oriented towards a consolidation of own market position through a focus of own marketing strategies on new resources belonging to the private market. They reach this market trough a diversification (development of new services 34.6%) and a specialization (development of human resources 37.6%).

The quality • Moreover, it is possible to confirm an opening of no profit enterprises towards the tools for quality implementation borrowed from the industry, as for instance the certification based on the UNI EN ISO (14.0%). • For what concerns the diffusion of the social balance, it is adopted by the 18.7% of the interviewed companies.

Conclusions • So it is possible to affirm that, in the framework of pathways oriented to quality development, there is an increasing adoption of specific management tools that brings social organizations nearer to for-profit companies.

Co-operation • The enquiry revealed that the 25% of interviewed companies does not join any representing cooperative plant. It is important to remind that it is a statistically explorative sample of the universe of the province of Rome, so it offers some trends.

Conclusion So it is possible to affirm that the elements that characterize companies that are able to face the market (even if with different efficacy levels) are: • The involvement of the majority if the members in decision making processes; • The progressive deliverance from public customers; • A constant increasing in the social structure and in the number of working members; • A strong attention to continuous training of members and to strategic marketing strategies; • The adoption of the new quality-related tools.

E.D.S. Enterprise services to development Equal Project n. IT-IT-G2-LAZ-002