The Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement A Step-by-Step Guide for Leveraging Technology to Track, Measure, and Communicate your Unique Impact. Introduction Like many social-good leaders, you’ve heard about the importance of mea- suring your impact. Billionaire philanthropist Mackenzie Scott is one of many funders reported to be giving away significant amounts of funding to non- profits who are able to demonstrate positive impact. Organizations that can demonstrate their unique impact are three-times more successful at raising money than those organizations who cannot show impact.ORGANIZATIONS WHO CAN DEMONSTRATE 3x THEIR IMPACT Impact-centric organizations use data to prove they are delivering impactful, equitable, cost-effective, and sustainable solutions to complex social problems. They define their success by the distinct impact they are making and the ef- fectiveness of the services they deliver relative to the resources at their dispos- al and the level of need. Leaders of these organizations ensure success and improve on the success they achieve by gathering data through measuresMORE LIKELY TO RAISE aligned with stated goals and outcomes. MONEY THAN THOSE WHO DON’T Despite the stated benefits and your desire to use data to demonstrate impact to funders and stakeholders, you may be struggling with how to begin. You and your team may also be feeling like you don’t have enough time, money, or expertise to commit to collecting, analyzing, and using key metrics in your de- cision-making and marketing. You may believe your objectives are too vague or intangible to quantify. There is also a lot of confusion about what “impact” really means. Leaders know the value of metrics but often are unsure about what to measure in order to quantify their impact. That’s why we’ve put together this Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement. The goal of this guide is to break down the steps for using technology to become an impact-centric organization into bite-sized pieces that are easily digestible. It will equip you with confidence and a roadmap to begin measuring and com- municating the impact that your organization makes. INSIDE THIS GUIDE: • Defining Your Organization’s Logic Model • The Three Types of Data you need to collect in order to measure your impact • Creating Objectives • Collecting Data • The Importance of Technology The Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement About the Author For more than 20 years, Sheri Chaney Jones has worked alongside foundation, non-profit, and govern- ment leaders to help them use data to solve complex social problems. An author, professor, and internation- ally recognized expert, Sheri believes in data, metrics, and accountability. After a 10-year career in govern- ment evaluating the impact of public funding, Sheri founded Measurement Resources Company in 2010. Now a national firm, Measurement Resources increas- es the capacity of non-profit and government sector organizations through high-performance practices and data-driven insights. In 2018, Sheri launched SureImpact to automate and simplify the process of collecting and sharing out- comes and impact data. Sheri is a thought leader on public sector evaluation and applied organizational research. She is the author of Impact & Excellence: Data-Driven Strategies for Aligning Mission, Culture, and Performance in Nonprofit and Government Organizations (Jossey Bass, 2014). Sheri is passionate about women’s equity and the advancement of girls. She is a past president of the National Association of Women Business Owners and a Commissioner for the Columbus Women’s Commission for the Mayor’s Office. Sheri holds a Master of Arts degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Central Michigan University and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from The Ohio State University. Sheri, her husband Matt and their four children live in Columbus, Ohio. Before You Get Started Becoming an impact-centric organization can be a big shift in culture and thinking for some nonprofit organizations. Many organizations say they are driven by impact, but few have systems in place to make the case that they’re actually achieving their mission. Becoming impact-centric first requires becom- ing accountable to the outcomes your organi- zation generates. It then requires the collection and use of data to prove these outcomes. If your team is ready to get serious about pur- suing impact, read on! The Ultimate Guide to Impact MeasurementEXAMPLE LOGIC MODELINPUTS• United Way Funding • Local Providers • Sureimpact Defining Your OUTPUTS Organization’s • Education Services Logic ModelEmployment Services • Employement Services • Financial Literacy Services • Housing Services The best way to begin the process of becoming an impact-centric organization is to clearly define your organization’s logic model. This is often known as your theory of change, the roadmap that SHORT-TERM OUTCOMES successfully connects an organization’s resources and activities and demonstrates how these inputs and outputs correspond to the ways • Improved school stability the organization creates positive social change. • Access to assistance withbasic needs For example, why does your organization exist? What are your • Linkage to needed goals for changing the lives and circumstances of those benefi-wraparound services ciaries who receive your services? Who are the individuals in your • Access to rental/mortgage community who need your services the most?assistance Once you have determined this, you can then drill down into what you should be measuring to understand and prove how your ser- vices are facilitating these changes with your desired population. MEDIUM-TERM OUTCOMES• Improved education outcomes • Improved housing stability • Improved financial stability LONG-TERM OUTCOMES• Stable Homes • Thriving Families • Successful Students The Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement The Three Types of Data There are three types of data you need to collect in order to measure your impact:Demographics Outputs/ActivitiesOutcomes Who you serve.How you serve them. How those you serve are better off as a result. The Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement WHO YOU SERVE Many people think that nonprofits are completely different from for-profit businesses. While the overarching goals of a social-good organization are different, the need to understand your audience is similar. Here are some questions you should understand about your audience if you are collecting the right demographic data: • Who are the individuals that most need your services? • Are you able to communicate the needs of those you serve? • Are your programs serving who you intended to serve? • Is your programming delivering equitable outcomes for a wide variety of individuals? • If not, is there an opportunity to develop more appropriate and effective interventions? While there are a wide variety of client demographic data you can collect, here are a few key data points to start: • Age • Household size • Education Level • Gender identity • Annual Income • Zip Code • Race & ethnicity• EmploymentHOW YOU SERVE PARTICIPANTS Output metrics track individual program details and the volume of work produced. How many meals did you serve? How many hours of services did you provide? How much money did you spend providing stable housing for families? These are the metrics that tell you where your time and resources are being spent. Even if your staff members don’t call this process “counting outputs,” your organization probably already does this on a regular basis. HOW THOSE YOU SERVE ARE BETTER OFF Outputs are important, but they don’t tell the complete story of how your organization is effectively changing the lives of those you serve. Impact-centric organizations move beyond measuring outputs and begin to monitor and use outcomes data as part of their decision-making and man- agement process. Though it may sound intimidating, every organization has the capacity to measure and communicate impact. A common myth is that your organiza- tion’s impact is equal to the number of services you have provided. As we just discussed, those are actually your outputs. What funders really want to know when they ask about impact is how individuals and families are better off as a result of their investment, or their outcomes. In this section, we’ll help you get started with measuring outcomes. To begin, take some time to write down your answer to the following questions: • What does success for your organization or program look like? • Are you able to demonstrate that your program is producing positive results for your participants? • What positive changes have occurred in their individual lives because of your nonprofit? • What positive changes do you want to occur in their individual lives? Likely, your response will be drawn from your organization’s mission statement and goals. Broadly speaking, success might include: • Increased knowledge and learning • Changing constituent attitudes • Changed attitudes• Increasing constituent readiness • Increased readiness • Reducing an undesirable behavior • Reduction of undesirable behavior• Increasing a desirable behavior • Increase of desirable behavior • Maintaining a new behavior • Maintenance of new behavior • Improving participants’ economic • Increased economic conditions conditions • Improved health conditions • Improving participants’ health • Increased economic development conditions • Increasing constituent knowledge and learning The Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement Creating Objectives The next step is to create a measurable roadmap to your constituents, consumers, clients, etc. Avoid objectives ultimate goal identified in the questioning process. You that focus solely on you and your time, like developing can do this by breaking your goals down into a series of a communications plan. Objectives should focus on the concrete benchmarks called objectives. Objectives areoutcomes you want to achieve on the way to your goal. different than goals in that they are more specific and have a shorter time frame. When you’re clear about what Good objectives are SMART: Specific, Measurable, results you want to achieve in the short term, it becomesAttainable, Result-focused, and Time-specific. For exam- easier to assess whether your actions are leading to yourple, an organization that desires to promote the health long-term goals. and wellness of the community by increasing housing stability for single moms may set the following roadmap Objectives should directly address the program or soci- with SMART objectives. etal goal you are pursuing. Always think in terms of your SMART Time-bound Specific Measureable AttainableRelevant Time-bound • What is your • How will you• Is your goal • Is the goal • How long will goal?measure your achievable? relevant to your it take you to success? organization? complete your • Can you define• What goal? it as clearly as • What metrics will roadblocks will • Is it worth possible?you use? you face? targeting? • What’s your roadmap going forward? By the end of the first quarter, we will have: By the end of the first year: • Conducted at least 75 whole-person assessments. • Increase the number of participants who report positive • Tripled the number of participants who set goals to in-perceptions of their experience and outcomes by 10%. crease financial stability. • We will partner with at least three new affordable • Increased the number of service referrals made to commu- housing providers. nity partners by 5%. • There will be a 5% increase in the number of participants earning a livable wage. Establishing smaller objectives on the road to your overall goal will help leaders know where the programs or activities are not doing what they intended them to do that would prevent them to reach their goal. For example, if the organiza- tion is unable to establish the initial meetings, it may be unlikely that they will get momentum in getting organizations signed up as referral partners. Leaders can quickly make changes to course correct, allowing faster achievement of ultimate goals.The Ultimate Guide to Impact MeasurementCollecting DataWhatever success looks like for your organization, you now knowthat being able to quantify your impact will require tracking whoyou served, how you served them, and how they are better off asa result. Having outcome data available to make informed deci-sions starts with establishing a reliable data-collection culture. Whether you are collecting demographic data or outcomes data,some best practices apply across the board. Having the basicsdown during data collection and entry builds a solid foundationfor your programming. In today’s world, where there are vastamounts of data to manage, ensuring your data is accurate fromthe beginning takes on a whole new level of importance. Collecting data should: • Be easy. Staff need a simple way to collect data so they can spend their time on what really moves the needle.• Be secure. Protecting sensitive client information is critical. Staff need a secure way to collect and store client data. Individual Excel spreadsheets scattered throughout an organization are not secure.• Be integrated into an organization’s culture and involve every level of the organization.• Provide real-time insights into client demographics, outputs, and outcomes.• Be standardized across organizations and programs. The Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement The Importance of Technology Software is the key to optimizing dataOrganizations using paper forms and tracking. Once you have established your Excel spreadsheets struggle to provide theory of change and determined what person-centered care that addresses all you want to measure, you need a plan for of their participants’ needs because they implementing tools that will automate the lack the visibility across the organization’s process of data collection and reporting programs and services. Technology helps and ensure your organization’s continued your programs run more efficiently by success. Technology does not replace streamlining data collection, reporting, people; it optimizes the team members and compliance procedures. If there’s you have and makes it possible to expand a problem with a program, everyone your organization’s capacity to serve the should have access to the same data individuals and families in your communityand be able to collaborate easily. When with the highest level of need. The right it’s time to assess impact, information software tools help you get the most out shouldn’t be scattered. of your team members without over- whelming them and causing burnout.Technology also simplifies reporting and increases trust with funders and stake- One of the biggest challenges nonprof-holders. At a time when nonprofits are its face is a lack of centralization and under immense pressure to demonstrate consistency. Their operations are often their effectiveness, technology is indis- disjointed, and they’re trying to manage pensable. When a funder wants informa- information coming from many sources: tion about a project, nonprofits should be frontline staff, consultants, practitioners able to produce it quickly. in the field, contractors, and so on. This can lead to chaotic internal processes. Technology can help solve these prob- Another challenge is the lack of visibility lems. Data for all of your programs can be across programs. stored in a single place, and outcomes and analytics dashboards provide quick insights into the organization’s performance. The Ultimate Guide to Impact Measurement Are You Ready to Become Impact-Centric? Hopefully, this guide makes the process of getting started with impact management a little easier. Share these insights with your team to guide your search and vetting process. Visit sureimpact.com to view a demo of our impact manage- ment platform. ABOUT SUREIMPACT SureImpact is a data collection and impact management soft- ware that was built for the social good sector by people who have been working in the government, nonprofit, and collective impact initiatives for over twenty years. From communicating to donors and funders to understanding the factors that pro- duce the best outcomes for your organization’s participants, SureImpact can help you secure the impact-centric future you envision. SureImpact is the only impact management and reporting solution that is specifically designed for social-good providers and their funders.Learn more today at info@sureimpact.ĒŸũɔor 614-826-7774.©2023 SureImpact, Inc.