Launch: The Costs and Benefits of WISEs - Wednesday 30 September 2026

Launch: The Costs and Benefits of Work Integrated Social Enterprises - Clarity on costs and outcomes of employment focused social enterprises 

Social enterprises across Australia are tackling some of the hardest employment challenges. They support people facing complex barriers into paid work that lasts. Yet the real cost of doing this well is still poorly understood. 

Join us for a discussion on new research led by Social Traders and Deloitte Access Economics, with support from the Paul Ramsay Foundation and the Minderoo Foundation - Representatives from all four organisations will share the findings and explore what they reveal about the costs, outcomes and impact of employment-focused social enterprises, and what they mean for social enterprises, funders, policymakers and buyers seeking to drive inclusive employment outcomes. 

Drawing on data from more than 300 certified social enterprises, the research provides a clearer picture of what it actually takes to support people into sustained employment, where funding and cost shortfalls exist, and how outcomes are being measured across the sector. 

Importantly, this work goes beyond research. A key part of the project has been embedding these insights into sector infrastructure. Social enterprises, whether certified or not, can now access new benchmarking and data visualisation functionality through the Social Traders Portal.  

This delivers on the research ambition of creating practical tools that help individual enterprises better understand their performance while strengthening evidence and insights across the sector. If you're a social enterprise, come along to learn more about how you can access and use these new capabilities. 

The session will explore how shared evidence on costs and outcomes can improve pricing, procurement, investment and policy decisions, and how better measurement can evolve from a reporting requirement into a practical tool for everyday decision-making. 

Attendees will leave with stronger evidence, clearer language and actionable insights to support inclusive employment and help reshape the systems that underpin it. 

Speakers:

• Tara Anderson, CEO, Social Traders 

• Rachel Power, Associate Director, Deloitte Access Economics 

• Jessica Graham-Franklin, Manager, Delivery Impact, Paul Ramsay Foundation 

• Cronje Wolvaardt, Director, Impact Investing, Minderoo Foundation 

Registration is essential and will close at 10am the day prior unless booked out.   

Please contact our events team with any questions events@socialtraders.com.au 

We hope to see you there.