FACULTY AND RESEARCH

Many young entrepreneurs are insufficiently informed about worker cooperatives and, in particular, about the model of ‘Cooperative and Participative Companies’ (Sociétés coopératives et participatives – SCOP). Many consider that such cooperatives fail to reward entrepreneurial talent or provide access to funding. The article discusses the accuracy of such criticism and presents potential remedies for the negative perceptions. SCOP companies operate on principles that aim at entrepreneurial achievement rather than at the accumulation of wealth. A SCOP entrepreneur’s relationship with his or her company is frequently characterized by a concern for sustainability, personal achievement, and a perspective on time that strongly links work with capital. A SCOP entrepreneur, therefore, can draw benefit from elements that are not necessarily financial in nature. SCOP companies thus constitute a viable alternative for capital mobilization. Given that new modes of funding are broadening the available range of external funding, SCOP entrepreneurship will need to be vigilant if it is to avoid the excesses occasioned by traditional capitalist models.