The Future is Bright for Social Impact Measurement: What have we learned from 2015 and where we are headed – Maya Romic
For the last event for 2015, SIMNA NSW wanted to reflect on the year that was in social impact measurement and what the future holds for those who are committed to measuring impact. We had the pleasure of hosting a panel of speakers representing three different sectors – government, corporate and non-government – who answered questions from the participants. Mark Galvin, Director at Ernst & Young, brought in the perspective of FaCS, a major government funder of social services in NSW, having helped set up the baseline and monitoring and evaluation system for the Safe Home for Life reforms. The voice of the corporate sector was represented by Sarah Breavington, Mirvac Sustainability Manager. Roger Kennedy, Head of Programs, Impact and Collaboration at YWCA NSW, shared his insight on social impact measurement from a non-government perspective. With Professor and Director of Research (Social Outcomes) at the Centre for Social Impact, Kristy Muir, facilitating the event, it was an invaluable discussion on lessons we have learned on social impact measurement and what we can expect in the new year.
What did we learn in 2015?
Collaboration and engagement of key stakeholders is an integral part of social impact measurement. All panellists agreed that social impact measurement cannot be successful without the commitment from different parties and stakeholders, including managers, staff and clients. Mirvac’s journey in 2015 was focused on capturing community data through an online system they had developed; and implementing Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework. Sarah explained that she had spent an extensive amount of time with managers who would need to capture data on community outcomes. Sarah stressed the importance of engaging with people in order to get buy-in into the measurement process, even though it can be time consuming. Roger and Mark, too, said that engagement and collaboration were something they had to focus on in their social impact measurement work. Mark, who has been working extensively with FaCS in developing a monitoring and evaluation framework for the Safe Home for Life reforms in the child protection system, said that the Department is more committed to new models of working collaboratively with the funded services, such as joint assessments, as well as better managed contractual relationships. He said that for government, collaborating with partners is important to create better outcomes for the 65,000 children and young people who are subject to neglect and abuse every year and the 3,000 who enter into care each year. Roger pointed out that adopting a client-centred approach to data collection and using Results Based Accountability™ framework enabled them to know if the people they serve across 50 programs are better off. Engaging with staff and clients to measure social impact and collaborating with different partners, such as Youth Off the Streets, has also enabled them to increase government funding and expand services, because they were able to demonstrate their impact.
Investing in social impact measurement early is helpful. Answering a question from one of the participants, the panel agreed that including a social impact measurement framework in conjunction with strategic and business planning is good practice. Mark reiterated that evaluation is important as it allows programs and services to improve on what they are doing and Sarah explained that setting up an evaluation framework was something Mirvac did as part of their Sustainability Strategy. This allowed them to better manage expenditure and promote accountability. Roger said that setting up an impact measurement early helps to clarify the vision for the organisation. He further added that he would recommend organisations setting up their intended results and measures up front to help guide their work.
Transparency in impact measurement is important. Mark advised that organisations should be transparent about what they are measuring and what they are doing. Sharing data and results can be powerful in encouraging learning and collaboration across sectors and services, and therefore creating positive change for people and communities. Producing easy-to-understand reports and adopting strategies on how to better communicate results can be strategic as well, as explained by the panel. It can help get your work noticed and give organisations competitive edge.
Investing in technology is smart. Question on whether technology platforms matter in measuring social impact confirmed the fact that technology plays an integral role in our every-day lives and social impact measurement is no different. All panellists said that technology can help with capturing data in an easier way and it can therefore save time and money. YWCA NSW started off with excel spreadsheets in the beginning to capture their data and are now looking into a client relationship management system to make it easier to collect data. Sarah concluded: “You would be naïve to think technology doesn’t matter.”
What does the future hold?
Social impact measurement practice will grow and improve. There is a clear sign that social impact measurement in Australia has grown in the last year and it indicates that the practice will be more widely used in the coming year and beyond. Mark said that the government is committed to investing in measuring outcomes and reforming their policies to match this commitment. He said that measures will be more defined and there will be more rigour applied to evaluation and quality improvement of programs. This is great news for the non-government sector who have identified that there is a lack of consistency and guidance around the data they are required to collect and report on to their funders.
In answering if she could have a magic wand to change the current state of social impact measurement in corporations, Sarah said that she would like to see everyone understand what social impact measurement was and it was something that everyone did. This vision may not be far from being realised as Mirvac will be working on improving their social impact measurement practice in 2016.
Financial incentives for outcomes may be more widely used. Roger predicted that the private sector will invest more into social services with social impact bonds and “pay-per-outcome” models possibly being introduced, to follow examples in US. Mark also mentioned that the government may be looking into using financial incentives for outcomes.
Measuring individual client outcomes as they move through the system will be explored. The participants did pose a question about what is being done about tracking and measuring outcomes for service users as they move from one provider to the other. The panel acknowledged that there are some limitations to making this happen, but that there are definitely interests in doing that more in the future. Mark mentioned that FaCS are conducting a longitudinal study on outcomes for young people after they leave out of home care. It is possible we will see more of this in the future, especially if we get better at working together and share our experiences and results.
Another year has passed, and we have seen an immense growth in the use of social impact measurement in government, corporate and non-government sectors. The coming year promises further growth and improvement in this important practice. We would like to thank our three speakers and facilitator for sharing their time and insights. SIMNA NSW will continue to bring more insight into the field through organising engaging events such as this one. For those who are not members yet, please click here to sign up. We look forward to seeing you in the new year.