Both in social and economical terms, being able to quantify social impact is crucial in the CSR and humanitarian sector. Yet, despite large amounts of funds and charitable donations being allocated to create social impact, more often than not the non-profit organisations responsible for the implementation of these social projects struggle quantifying the results – and not surprisingly because, really, how do you quantify impact on a personal level, like happiness, confidence, or livelihood?
A partnership between Taylor’s Education Group and Incitement
These are the questions May Wong Mei Ching and Daniel de Gruijter, asked themselves – questions that sparked a strategic partnership and collaboration between Taylor’s Education Group and Incitement in December 2016, to develop a social impact measurement methodology that could be used across the board by non-profit organisations to deliver thorough and accurate reporting on their work.
Meet the Hourglass Social Impact Measurement Methodology
Fast forward one year and countless of brainstorming sessions, iterations, trials and errors, and tests and validations with both internal and external clients, a methodology called the Hourglass was created.
Once the Hourglass methodology was developed and empirically tested in a variety of projects, it was then embedded into 3 large-scale social projects:
- Program Keusahawanan Taylor’s – in partnership with CIMB Islamic
- Volunteering International Professional (VIP) Fellowship Programme 2017, implemented by Incitement in partnership with the Malaysian Ministry of Finance and National Strategy Unit.
- Liter of Light Malaysia, a social project currently implemented in 24 countries.
The objective of the Hourglass is to derive both qualitative and quantitative measurements (results) from social projects. The outcome of each Hourglass workshop is to establish and align an impact measurement target model by recognising the various objectives of every stakeholder involved – from beneficiaries to sponsors, from non-profits to consultants – and carefully crafting impact measurements around those objectives.
Currently Incitement is rolling out additional modules under what is now the Hourglass umbrella, specifically to help corporations design, develop, strategise, measure and market their Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives.
Read more about Hourglass in Taylor’s University 2017 Impact Report.
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