A common definition

Something big happened very quietly last month: both verifiers and all peak bodies for social enterprises in Australia all started working to the same definition.

As boring as that may sound, it's hugely impactful for the 12,000 businesses-for-good across the country that were having to show how they met different definitions for different organisations, places and opportunities.

NSW Government has already adopted the same five standards and we are hopeful that other governments will follow suit.

So what is a social enterprise?

It is an organisation that:

1. Exists to solve a social and/or environmental problem (Purpose)

2. Prioritises purpose, people, and planet over profit in day-to-day decisions (Operations)

3. Has a self-sustaining revenue model, earning income through trade (Revenue)

4. Reinvests the majority of any surplus back into its purpose (Use of surplus), and

5. Chooses legal structures and financing that protect and lock in purpose long term (Structure)

Thank you to all of the people and organisations that have done the hard yards over many years, with thousands of discussions and debates, to get us here.

First published on SECNA’s LinkedIn page in May 2026.