Social Entrepreneurship & Corporate Social Responsibility
Concept Cue
There are several for-profit companies that provide video relay services (video interpreting of phone calls) to the Deaf community. These companies, like Sorenson and Purple, are funded through the FCC as part of its mandate to provide equal access to telecommunications within the United States. Video Relay Service (VRS) means the Deaf community has access to receiving and making phone calls. Calls to the bank or to the doctor's office. Calls from the school, calls from family. Calls that go to voicemail and calls from telemarketers. And don't forget calls to 911.
These companies obviously provide a valuable service. The benefit that they provide addresses a real need. It has not been imposed or artificially manufactured by the business. In fact, because of the way they are funded, the FCC imposes strict rules about what these companies can and can't do. For example, these companies are not allowed to promote the use of their service; they can't encourage people to make more calls though promotions or advertising.
VRS companies tend to offer other interpreting services in addition to video relay. They also participate in different community events. Sorenson attends hundreds of events a year and sponsors many of them. "In the past 20 years, Sorenson has donated over $18 million within the Deaf and Hard of Hearing communities" Sorenson Events. Convo is a video relay and interpreting service company that is Deaf-owned. Founded in 2009, it is the largest Deaf-owned business "with over 500 employees serving five countries in ten different languages" Video Relay Services | VRS | VRS Interpreter | VRS Apps (convorelay.com). Convo has created several programs to give back to the community that focus on young people. For example, they have partnered with LEAD-K and the Nile DiMarco Foundation, by providing media and artistic support, to raise language awareness for Deaf children Giving Back - Convo Communications (convorelay.com). They also put on/sponsor Deaf Film Camp where Deaf kids who aspire to work in the film industry get hands on experience with Convo's own creative team members that volunteer as camp staff.
The support, volunteer hours, and sponsorships offered by these companies has many positives for the community. There are pros and cons to any social entrepreneurship. It's important to address real needs and concerns that are coming from within the community. There is a saying that the Deaf world is small. This means a lot of things. Everyone knows everyone. So you want to maintain good relationships with people because chances are you might work with them again. Something that can happen when fundraising or looking for volunteers is that the same people tend to get hit up over and over. I find Convo's approach interesting. Their solution to this is to try to grow the Deaf ecosystem, that is, the flow of money and resources within the Deaf community, by choosing Deaf owned-businesses and Deaf professionals, and partnering with schools and organizations for the Deaf (https://convorelay.com/deaf-ecosystem/). I agree with this, I don't think that there is anything about their business model that I could change or improve upon when it comes to social responsibility.
Community Partner Report
Five Star Interpreting (https://5starinterpreting.com/about/)
I decided to research Five Star Interpreting by looking them up online. They were established in 2016 by Ben Daniel and Cody Simonsen. Ben is Deaf and Cody is a CODA, so they both had first-hand experiences to draw on when creating their company, with the goal of providing communication access for all.
Their mission is to "Eliminate Communication Gaps By Matching Qualified American Sign Language Interpreters With Opportunities To Enhance Accessibility For Individuals Who Use Sign Language As Their Preferred Mode of Communication" (https://5starinterpreting.com/about/).
Five Star Interpreting provides access to communication. This is a societal issue. After experiencing his own frustrations with the limitations of an interpreting system that fell short, Ben wanted to enhance the interpreting landscape for the entire Deaf community. "His vision aims to transform uncertainty into comfortable access to vital information" (https://5starinterpreting.com/about/).
Social Entrepreneurship & Corporate Social Responsibility is a part of Five Star Interpreting's mission. It is their vision to create an "agency that champions collaboration with the Deaf community" (https://5starinterpreting.com/about/). They also collaborate with other community partners. I remember that Five Star sponsored a table for the Sego Lily 1920's Gala last year and provided free interpreting services for the evening. I can see myself working for Five Star Interpreting in the future. I know interpreters that work for them, and I find the company's mission and goals appealing.