We examine the resource mobilization efforts undertaken by a social venture to organize the
2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games and bring about a change in social attitudes
towards the cause of learning and intellectual disabilities. In contrast to previously advanced
views of social ventures as powerless actors, we find instead that they are able to leverage the
visibility afforded by large-scale events to create positions of mutual dependence, which allow
them to access broad support bases and assert themselves in relationships with external parties.
Specifically, we find that resource mobilization involves six distinct tactics rooted in the softer
forms of power, namely, attraction and inducement. The use of these soft-power tactics depends
upon the social venture’s goal at different moments of the relationship with its partners and the
level of support available from each external party. Our elaborated theory highlights both the
role and limitations of soft power in mobilizing resources and managing relationships
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