But in writing what would become the chosen paper—an examination of the online platform Just Arrived, which matched newly arrived immigrants with employers in her native Sweden—Lovisa “Lisa” Tengberg (MBA 2020) found that the topic was much more complicated. She had to understand the broader challenges of assimilating the massive influx of migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees hoping to find new homes in Sweden and throughout the European Union.

“The refugee crisis in Europe is a result of decades of uncontrolled immigration, leading to deeply ingrained, dysfunctional structures,” says Tengberg, who is now a journalist in Lisbon, Portugal. “Outdated international treaties and a fearful political climate fostered the crisis and hindered solutions—motivating private players, such as Just Arrived, to initiate change. They, in turn, pressure decision makers to create conditions for them to reach scale and depth. Ultimately, you see, they drive progress in each other.”

Integrating Newcomers

The case “Just Arrived: Integrating Refugees in Sweden”—written by Senior Lecturer Brian Trelstad, who teaches the elective course, and Emilie Billaud and Mette Fuglsang Hjortshøj of the Europe Research Center—draws on Tengberg’s analysis. The case provides an overview of the European refugee crisis; between 2011 and 2019 alone, more than 6 million people applied for asylum in the EU. It also examines the different approaches taken in parts of the EU to integrate newcomers into the job market by comparing Just Arrived with other job-matching platforms, including a competing Swedish venture, Novare Potential, as well as Socialbee in Germany, and Mygrants in Italy.

Just Arrived, founded in 2015, was Sweden’s first online platform aimed at newcomers and employers in need of low-skilled jobs for short-term contracts. Funded by angel investors, the for-profit enterprise uses a business approach to solve one of Sweden’s most important social problems. Newcomers can join the Just Arrived community for free and receive help with a variety of needs, from validating their competencies to assisting with work permits. Employers can also join Just Arrived for free and either advertise for a job directly, or receive help developing a customized proposal for their employment needs.

Students Gain Insights As with any case study, there are no right answers to the questions posed in “Just Arrived” about the business models and approaches each app uses to address the challenge of integrating refugees into the job market, but there are insights that students gain from the class discussion that help them on their own journeys into social entrepreneurship.

“The case is a great introduction to my course on Social Entrepreneurship and Systems Change,” says Trelstad, who kicked off the course in 2020 by teaching “Just Arrived” and who taught it again in September. “The case presents a range of solutions—from for-profits to nonprofits—working in various ways with national and regional governments to address the employment challenges facing refugees. In debating which they think will be more effective, it reveals students’ current point of view while outlining the framework for the class that will challenge and deepen their understanding of systems change.”