Social Impact Assessment Report
Through this report, we offer perspectives from various approaches on obstacles, promises, and strategic considerations related to impact assessment. Our publication is destined for actors from the business, investment, and international-development fields.
The Society & Organizations (S&O) Center has unveiled a social impact measurement report that standardizes financial and impact assessment of corporate social responsibility initiatives across different industries and types of organization.
The research team has identified seven key challenges to measuring social impact and developed a landmark assessment tool to standardize evaluation across all industries and types of organizations. This standard is set to drastically improve effectiveness, scalability and return on impact initiatives.
Part I
Who, What, and How of Impact Assessment
Major evaluators of social impact
Approaches to social impact measurement
Mapping social impact approaches
Part II
Challenges of Impact Assessment
Social Impact vs. Financial Impact
The seven measurement challenges of impact assessment
Strategic challenges of impact assessment
Part III
Your Social Impact
Setting /Revising the goal(s) of Social Initiatives
Planning the Assessment
Improving the Assessment
Strategic Use of Social Initiatives
The tool, a four-stage measurement framework designed by S&O researchers Rodolphe Durand, Zacharia Rodgers and Sookyoung Lee, addresses a long-standing, acute lack of standardization in impact measurement – an issue that undermines effectiveness, financial efficiencies and credibility for all types of organization and industry.
1. Setting & Revising Goals
Checking assumptions and broadening objectives.
2. Planning the Assessment
Making adequate investment and differentiating contexts.
3.Improving the Assessment
Constant revision of processes, engagement of impact value chain and avoiding over-reliance on quantitative metrics.
4. Strategic use of social initiative
Looking beyond immediate risks and benefits and leveraging goodwill for increased business and social impact.
Published by HEC Paris S&O Center in February 2019, the Social Impact Assessment Strategy Report, provides a new framework which is set to become an industry landmark at a time when social impact is gathering unprecedented momentum in global business.
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