Thanks! Although this is not necessarily new. And one key piece that should be included: the change in the overall market system. I think the ultimate goal should be to be more systemic in the way we measure. To bring together traditional nonprofit measurements around poverty and impact with typical business and social enterprise measurements (efficiency and effectiveness) with typical economic measurements (such as tax revenues, job creation, labour income) to set up deeper systemic measurements, such as increase in business-to-business services, change in investment patterns towards long-term customer relationships and emergence of new market-based products and services that respond to pro-poor needs. One thing the social enterprise and nonprofit space do not measure much of is how they might strengthen the system around them in order to make their roles and positions within the system obsolete. Or better still to have their roles change so that their influence on the system does not outweigh the influence of local actors and system players.
COMMENTS
BY Chris Otis
ON August 20, 2015 01:14 PM
This is a great article—and a valuable perspective on the work of nonprofits. Thank you!
BY AB
ON August 22, 2015 01:54 AM
Thanks! Although this is not necessarily new. And one key piece that should be included: the change in the overall market system. I think the ultimate goal should be to be more systemic in the way we measure. To bring together traditional nonprofit measurements around poverty and impact with typical business and social enterprise measurements (efficiency and effectiveness) with typical economic measurements (such as tax revenues, job creation, labour income) to set up deeper systemic measurements, such as increase in business-to-business services, change in investment patterns towards long-term customer relationships and emergence of new market-based products and services that respond to pro-poor needs. One thing the social enterprise and nonprofit space do not measure much of is how they might strengthen the system around them in order to make their roles and positions within the system obsolete. Or better still to have their roles change so that their influence on the system does not outweigh the influence of local actors and system players.
BY MD
ON September 2, 2015 06:30 AM
Can you recommend someone in Canada who is doing this kind of analysis now?
BY Greg Thomson
ON March 24, 2016 11:43 AM
Charity Intelligence is doing some work on social return on investment in Canada.