What gets measured gets done - WBCSD launches Measuring Impact Framework

In the spring of 2006, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) embarked on a two-year journey to develop a framework to assess the contribution of business to the economic and broader development goals in the societies where business operates.

This grew out of a request by WBCSD member companies to develop a measurement framework that could underpin the license to operate, improve the quality of stakeholder engagement, help manage risks more effectively and identify ways to enhance the business contribution to society.

The resulting Measuring Impact Framework is designed to help companies understand their contribution to society and use this understanding to inform their operational and long-term investment decisions and have better-informed conversations with stakeholders.

The Framework includes 3 components: (1) the business case for measuring impacts entitled “Beyond the bottom line”, highlighting the experience of several WBCSD member companies; (2) a four-step methodology to identify, measure, assess andmanage impacts; (3) an Excel-based user guide that helps companies carry out an assessment.

Key features of the Framework:

• Built by business for business – reflects the collaborative work of over 25 multinational companies over a 2-year period
• Grounded in what business does – based around activities and processes that companies do every day
• Moves beyond compliance – attempts to answer questions about what business contributes beyond traditional reporting
• Encourages stakeholder engagement – supports open dialogue with stakeholders to create a shared understanding of business impacts and societal needs, and to explore what business can and cannot do to address these needs
• Flexible - designed for any business and/or industry at any stage in its business cycle, operating anywhere in the world
• Complements existing tools – makes use of what is already out there (for example, the Global Reporting Initiative and International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards)
• Externally reviewed – reviewed by more than 15 stakeholders, ranging from non-governmental organizations to academia and government, including Oxfam, World Resources Institute, IFC and Harvard University.

For its part, the WBCSD-SNV Alliance for Inclusive Business is currently trying out the Framework on the ongoing inclusive business ventures in Latin America. Peding results, the Framework will be further customized to the Alliance's needs. Moreover, the lessons learned from the measurement process will be integrated into the Alliance's upcoming Guide to Inclusive Business, to be published towards the end of 2008 in both English and Spanish.

Access all the information:

• Web portal of the Measuring Impact Framework
• Brief presentation (power point) introducing the Framework

Comments

[Allan Shore]

Great piece. I love what it reflects of your activities, and, to be honest, how it showcases what more the nonprofit sector can do to highlight, advocate for and detail its own value to the teeter-totter of social entrepreneurism. Your "business case" and "best practices" ideas need to be balanced with similar concentrations on standards for community initiatives that favor the public's interests. Doing so helps affirm the lessons learned in your case studies and helps other nonprofits better determine how they can be productive voices at other tables of opportunity! I'd love to write something about this to hear your member's response.

Thanks for this kind of information.