The Yonsei School of Business (YSB), in cooperation with the Seoul Metropolitan Self-Support Center and the Seodaemun-gu Seoul Metropolitan Government Urban Regeneration Promotion Team, conducted community-related activities through the "Social Contribution Project uSEE (undergraduate Social Engagement & Enterprise)" project during the 2020 spring semester. Twenty-three students, working in four teams, performed projects for The Masil Business Group, Liberabit, Coffee Kongkong, and the Making Story Cooperative.

As a result, The Masil Cafe project of The Masil Business Group won the Yonsei Social Entrepreneurial Award (YSEA) of Yonsei University's Institute for Higher Education Innovation for its vision of fostering talented persons capable of changing society. Student Ye Jin Kim (entering class of 2018, Interior Design), who was gave the presentation at YSEA, said, “This award was a great gift to all the teams who worked hard throughout the semester." She expressed her gratitude to the officials of The Masil Cafe, who always encouraged the team and shared valuable experiences. She also thanked the participating residents and all the staff of the Seoul Metropolitan Self-Support Center.

 [Masil Cafe Project Team]

The Masil Business Group is a self-supporting cafe company run by local residents under the Seoul Gangseo Deungchon Regional Self-Support Center. To boost sales, the student team first developed seasonal and regular beverage menus. Through various events, including a tasting event, the team promoted the cafe to local residents. Moreover, students created pricing and service manuals to smooth the operation in the future. They also renewed the cup holders and menu designs. In addition, the interior design was adjusted with improved lighting to enhance the cafe atmosphere.

Liberabit is a social enterprise that develops products for mobility disadvantaged persons so that everyone can enjoy the right to commute without discrimination. The student team sought to devise market penetration strategies for "MOVIN," an assistive device for the disabled, and “Mute Here.” To achieve this, they contacted the corporate social responsibility departments and expanded the B2B market through B2B marketing activities and actual sales contracts. Moreover, the team conducted a series of communication activities, promoting the products via social media to attract the younger generation.

Coffee Kongkong is a third-year project under the Social Service Self-Support Work Group of the Jung-gu Community Self-Support Center in Seoul. It sells coffee clay handicrafts and provides coloring experience services. Having gathered the idea from participating residents' names, the students first proposed a new store, Yoon's Coffee Bean Room, and created a logo. When consulting with the parent company, the team reinforced the storytelling in their strategies to attract children, their target customers. They also proposed measures for reducing variable costs.

The Making Story Cooperative is a creative convergence educational institution that provides vocational education for participants to expand their potential and prepare them for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The student team established marketing plans by developing content such as short-term special lectures and hands-on daily classes and formed an integrated curriculum through a survey on education demand in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Min Ji Lee (entering class of 2018, Business), the team leader of The Masil Cafe project team, said, "I used to have a lot of interest in social enterprises, but when I came to college, I started to focus on myself more than the community. While working on the uSEE project, I came to rethink the value of social contribution.”

Ye Jin Kim, a student from the same team, said, "All the team members and business group officials worked together with the best efforts toward the same goal and experienced the value of 'cooperation' while always cheering and respecting each other. " She added, "I have also gained the courage to solve challenging social problems by uniting and working with people that share the same mindset."