Knox City Council: Social Enterprise Mapping and Social Procurement Market Analysis

CASE STUDY - DELIVERED THROUGH MY CONSULTING WORK AT SOCIAL TRADERS

Knox City Council wanted to understand its local social enterprise landscape and explore opportunities to embed social procurement into everyday operations. Early research revealed a relatively low concentration of social enterprises within the municipality, which raised a broader question: where could social value be found nearby, and how could Council make the most of it?

I led a social enterprise mapping and market analysis project that expanded beyond Knox to neighbouring municipalities, building a richer picture of the regional social enterprise ecosystem. This included developing a comprehensive directory of social enterprises with details on their goods, services, social purpose, beneficiary groups and geographic reach, along with a visual map to help Council identify potential suppliers. I also delivered a social procurement workshop for Council staff and local businesses, and conducted a current state analysis through interviews with Council officers and businesses to assess procurement readiness and awareness.

The project gave Knox City Council a clear and actionable path forward, including a baseline assessment of social procurement maturity, tailored recommendations to strengthen procurement practices, financial modelling showing the potential to increase social procurement spend by 8,500% over four years, and job creation modelling estimating up to 23 employment opportunities for people experiencing disadvantage.