2020–2025 Five Years of Impact Why We Exist A NOTE FROM SHERI CHANEY JONES, FOUNDER AND CEO OF SUREIMPACT SureImpact was born from my 20-year quest to understand why data wasn’t being used more effectively to solve social issues in the nonprofit sector. In 2010, I launched a national study to evaluate how nonprofit and government organizations were using data. The results of this study became the foundation for my first book, “Impact and Excellence: Data-driven Strategies for Aligning Mission, Culture, and Performance in Nonprofit and Government Organizations” (Josey Bass, 2014). My research revealed that nonprofits using outcome data were more financially successful, built stronger relationships, and had greater impact. This insight inspired me to launch Measurement Resources Company to help mission-driven organizations harness data for informed, lasting change. After working with thousands of nonprofit leaders, I realized they lacked the technology to measure their impact. When the right solution didn’t exist, I built it—empowering mission-driv- en organizations with the tools they need to achieve mean- ingful change. Since its informal launch in 2019, SureImpact has em- powered nonprofits to amplify their social impact and clearly demonstrate how their work improves lives. SureImpact automates the collection, analysis, and reporting of outcomes and impact data, saving staff valuable time and providing leaders with real-time insights into how their organization is changing lives. Today, more than 500 organizations rely on SureImpact to enhance their programs, inform funders, and confidently communicate their results. This impact report highlights some of the people, projects, and partnerships that have shaped our first five years. It also points to what we’ve learned and where we plan to go next. The Current State of the Nonprofit Sector The nonprofit sector is at a pivotal moment, striving gap for nonprofits because there hasn’t been to move beyond basic outcome tracking toward enough investment in building technology solutions demonstrating measurable, lasting impact. While specifically for nonprofits. many organizations still rely on spreadsheets, SureImpact was created to bridge this gap, offering Google Forms, survey platforms or traditional case tools specifically designed for how nonprofits oper- management software to track client demograph- ate. SureImpact enables organizations to measure ics and services, these tools often fall short in show- outcomes, optimize programs, and tell data-driven ing how lives are improved—precisely the insight stories that resonate with funders. In today’s out- funders now demand. Funders increasingly want come-driven funding landscape, this level of insight to invest in organizations that not only align with is no longer optional—it’s essential. their values but can also prove their effectiveness through data. This shift has exposed a technology Five Years of Impact PIONEERING A NEW MODEL As more organizations began using SureIm- LEARNING COLLABORATIVE MODEL pact to track, measure, and share their impact, we identified an additional opportunity to help social-good organizations and their funders drive social change through collective impact. Across geographies and sectors, collective social innovators are achieving what isolated efforts cannot. They’re not merely aligning mis- sions; they are trying to align data, infrastruc- ture, and resources to drive large-scale impact. But as of 2021, there was no software solution that connected all members of a collectiveDrive Large-Scale Impact impact network.with Shared Measurement The SureImpact Collaborative License was designed to connect all members of a collabo- rative network by streamlining data collection,BEFOREAFTER reporting, and analysis for each organization in the collaborative. SureImpact enables groups of organizations to create learning collaboratives within a shared data environment. For exam- ple, a funder can provide grantees with access Dozens of Dozens of Spreadsheets Spreadsheets to SureImpact so they can collect consistent, real-time outcomes data. Each organization can track its own activities and outcomes while contributing to the collective impact of the col- laborative network. These learning collaboratives take many Many Staff Streamlined, Automatic forms, including membership groups, like TexasHours Data Sharing, Reporting and Analysis Impact, a statewide interfaith organization that brings together diverse organizations statewide, or government-led initiatives, like the City of Columbus, Ohio’s afterschool learning col- laborative that tracks outcomes from various organization’s youth programs across high-risk zip codes. The data allows leaders and provid- Delayed Reporting with Real-Time CollectiveLimited VisibilityImpact Dashboard ers to see what works and where improvements are needed. Five Years of Impact Results and Outcomes Over the Last Five Years NUMBER OF ORGANIZATIONS NUMBER OF CLIENTS BEING USING SUREIMPACT TRACKED IN SUREIMPACT 383.8K506 399 137.9K 91.7K 58.9K 19.5K 1871 ‘20 ‘21 ‘22 ‘23 ‘24 ‘25 296NUMBER OF SERVICES PROVIDED BY SUREIMPACT CUSTOMERS 214 547.3K169 325.3K 299.7K 167.3K 10 6862 21.7K20202021 2022 2023 2024 2025 ‘20 ‘21 ‘22 ‘23 ‘24 ‘25 Five Years of Impact Customer Stories Every organization we work with brings a unique mission, but they share a common goal: to improve lives in mea- surable ways. Here are just a few stories that reflect how a variety of nonprofits, funders, collaboratives, and public agencies have used SureImpact to collect better data, strengthen programs, and communicate their results. From funder-led grantee networks to multi-program fam- ily service agencies, each example highlights what can happen when outcome measurement becomes part of everyday practice. CENTER OF HOPE FAMILY SERVICES Center of Hope Family Services (CHFS) is an innova- tive social-good agency dedicated to improving the life outcomes of adults, children, and families. By implement- ing SureImpact, CHFS consolidated data from multiple programs into a single platform, enhancing efficiency and accuracy in reporting. This integration led to increased cli- ent participation, improved staff performance monitoring, and a 50% rise in annual revenue through better demon- stration of social return on investment. Center of Hope has a critical mission in our community, so I’m always keen to make sure we have what we need when we need it,” said Dr. Tracee Perryman, CEO of Center of Hope. “I needed a dashboard that enabled me to check on programs at any point in time. Now if funders have questions, or our evaluation team needs access to the data, they can quickly get what they need. No more wor- rying about mistakes or lost data.” THE LEARNING COLLABORATIVE Funded by the City of Columbus, The Learning Collabo- rative is dedicated to providing enriching and supportive environments for middle school students during critical afterschool hours. To ensure the effectiveness and ac- countability of these programs, The Learning Collabora- tive implemented SureImpact. By leveraging SureImpact’s advanced platform, all funded programs within the collaborative have access to real-time information on their impact. This includes seamless roll-up of program outputs and outcomes, enabling comprehensive reporting on the effectiveness of these initiatives. Five Years of Impact TEXAS IMPACT FUTURE READY FIVE Texas Impact, an interfaith advocacy organization, Future Ready Five, a pioneering initiative in Central Ohio, sought to enhance civic engagement among faith com- focuses on enhancing early childhood education. Part- munities in a pilot project called Houston Faith Votes. nering with SureImpact, Future Ready Five implements The project mobilized diverse faith communities across early childhood learning screeners in preschools to drive the Greater Houston area to promote civic engagement targeted interventions and track improvements in chil- and ensure everyone has the information they need to dren’s readiness for kindergarten at individual, classroom, make an informed vote. By implementing SureImpact, school, and city-wide levels. As a result of this innovative they established a data-driven approach to track and approach, children who participated in Future Ready report on community outreach and policy advocacy Five’s programs demonstrated significant improvements efforts. This enabled them to demonstrate the tangible in school readiness, including enhanced language and outcomes of their initiatives, thereby strengthening their cognitive skills and increased literacy competencies. impact and accountability. These improvements translate to a more prepared and confident entry into kindergarten, setting a strong founda- Rebecca McIlwain, Houston Faith Votes Project Manager tion for future academic success. for Texas Impact shared, “The power of SureImpact is in the data. This pilot has shown us what actually increases voter engagement. It also is helping determine how we will shape the next phase of our work.” Five Years of Impact PHYSICIANS CARECONNECTION Physicians CareConnection (PCC), affiliated with the Co- lumbus Medical Association, coordinates care for high-risk populations in Central Ohio. By integrating SureImpact, PCC streamlined the tracking of patient services and social determinants of health, leading to improved health outcomes and reduced reliance on emergency services. The organization achieved these results at a significantly lower cost compared to traditional care models. “We had been searching for a platform that enabled us to easily track the activities completed by our coordinators when organizing social supports for our clients,” said Isi Ikharebha Green, MPH, President of Physicians CareCon- nection. “SureImpact has allowed us to track these activ- ities in one place while providing the analytics to demon- strate the outcomes of these services.” THE SIEMER INSTITUTE The Siemer Institute oversees a network of programs across the United States to help families stay housed and keep children enrolled in school. Utilizing SureImpact, the Siemer Institute standardized data collection across its network of 74 funded partners and more than 150 direct service providers. In 2024, the Siemer Institute reported 97% School Stability, 72% Housing Stability, and 65% In- come Stability across its network. With shared outcome measures, the Siemer Institute can identify where support is most needed and what strategies are most effective. Partners benefit from easier reporting, faster feedback, and better tools for internal planning. “As a funder that is investing in over 70 programmatic partnerships across the country, it is important to have access to near real-time data,” said Kimberly Habash Dorniden, president and national executive director of the Siemer Institute. “Having access to the data at the client level as well as regional level allows us to analyze results and turn that information into learning opportunities that can be shared across our network.” Five Years of Impact FAMILIES FLOURISH Families Flourish empowers economically vulnerable SureImpact transformed how Families Flourish operates families through a 3-year holistic support initiative. Their by providing a centralized, easy-to-use platform that program makes affordable rental housing available in streamlined their programs and decision-making. “The neighborhoods that offer access to opportunities, such insights available in SureImpact enable us to understand as higher-resourced schools, safer neighborhoods, and communicate to our donors and community stake- and employment. Their initial pilot program showed a holders about participant improvements in areas such 58%/$17,000 average increased income, 110+ point higheras health, child development, financial security, employ- credit scores, health and wellness improvements, and kids ment stability, and income,” said Amy Klaben, CEO and thriving at grade level and above in their schools whenco-founder of Families Flourish. they completed the program. Five Years of Impact What We’ve Learned During the five years since we publicly launched SureIm- pact, we’ve seen firsthand how strong data systems can change behavior. Here are a few patterns we’ve noticed: What we measure matters. What we focus on grows. If we want to create lasting change, we need to measure our efforts and strive to continue improving them. Collecting data is not the goal. Acting on it is. Organi- zations make better decisions when they can see trends and spot challenges before the year is over. Shared measures create stronger partnerships. When every partner in a collaborative reports on the same indi- cators, the focus shifts from compliance to improvement. Software alone is not enough. Training, guidance, andWhat Comes Next a culture of learning are just as important as having the There is a critical need to continue developing technology right tools. that maximizes social impact and simplifies communi-cating that impact with funders and stakeholders. We are True, measurable change is possible. People say im-committed to building product enhancements that enable pact is intangible, but we have 500 organizations that areus to help more organizations use outcome data in mean- growing and sharing their impact.ingful ways. The next phase in our journey will focus on: Funders will and want to pay for impact measure- ment. Funders are asking nonprofits to provide impact • Strengthening support for learning collaboratives and outcomes data, and they understand the effort and • Building tools that support equity-focused measurement investment it takes to make it happen. • Leveraging AI for greater automation and insights• Expanding our funder-grantee model Organizations who measure and share their impact • Providing deeper training and capacity-building support are able to expand their budget and influence. Accord- ing to the national research study mentioned earlier, non- Our work is rooted in the belief that social impact can be profits that can prove their impact are three times more measured, improved, and shared. We are excited and successful at raising money than those who can’t. ready for what’s next. CONTACT US If you are a funder, nonprofit leader, evaluator, or public agency looking to improve how you track and share outcomes, we want to work with you.Visit: www.sureimpact.com Email: info@sureimpact.com©2025 SureImpact, Inc.