Demonstrating Value

SROI is an approach to understanding and managing the impacts of a project, organisation or policy. It is based on stakeholders and puts financial value on the important impacts identified by stakeholders that do not have market values.

The SROI Network website offers general information about SROI and provides answers to commonly asked questions about program evaluation tools.

The University of Wisconsin's Logic Model displays the sequence of actions that describe what the program is and will do – how investments link to results. The model includes 5 core components in this depiction of the program action:

ActKnowledge is an action research organization dedicated to working with community organizations, not-for-profits, foundations and governmental agencies to transform traditional institutions and environments for social change. We work with these organizations as partners in a process aimed at creating transformative knowledge through the interplay of learning and action.

Follow the link above to register for ActKnowledge's Theory of Change Community.

Livelihoods Connect aims to provide researchers, policy-makers and development practitioners with up-to-date, diverse and credible information on the application of livelihoods approaches to development, research, policy and practice.

Social Capital Partners' (SCP) SROI report cards is a litmus test for these early investments - how well are we achieving our mission? - and as a tool for strategic management of social enterprises.  We use the first page of  the report template as a tool in our social due diligence process with a potential investee. It is simple - on one page, list your goals, methods to reach those goals and  what success metrics will be used to understand progress made in reaching these goals.

Work Integration Social Enterprises (WISEs) are social enterprises that focus on helping people with disadvantages into employment; whether that’s through job creation, job placement, work preparation, Intermediate Labour Market (ILM) scheme or vocational training. The ones doing job creation within their own business are most likely to be Social Firms.

In the past few years, as the lines between grantmaking and investing have begun to blur, the idea of measuring social return concurrent with traditional financial accounting has caught on among investors, funders and entrepreneurs. There has also been widespread movement toward more tangible accountability for the social impact created for each invested or granted dollar.

The DBL Project aims to help the field of DBL ventures better apply rigorous and useful methods to assess social outcomes and return.

The Roberts Enterprise Development Fund has pioneered a model to employ individuals who are overcoming chronic poverty, homelessness, criminal history, substance abuse or mental illness.

REDF is a San Francisco-based venture philanthropy organization that invests in social enterprises. Since 1997, REDF has provided funding and business assistance to a carefully selected portfolio of social enterprises that employ young people disconnected from school and work, and adults who are overcoming barriers to employment.

This site is constructed to provide third sector and mission driven organisations with ways to prove and improve their quality and impact, aiming to:

Demonstrating Value offers simple management solutions that will enable you to use information and data more effectively to run your organization, plan for the future, and show your value to the community.  Designed originally for social enterprises, Demonstrating Value solutions are also effective for other types of organizations both in the profit and non-profit world. Learn more about different solutions below.