Measuring Impact In CSI

1. Measuring Impact In CSI Michelle Yorke michelle@csisolutions.co.za CSI Solutions.co.za And CSR Library.co.za

2. Why Measure Impact? Impact is the new buzz word but what’s the relevance? 2004 – White elephant projects Multi national corporate projects Classrooms – used as storage – no teachers Computer centre – no skilled teacher or electricity Large commercial veg garden, funded by the EU, goats grazing in the field

3. Research project :The CSI Toolkit • 18 months of in-depth research • Interviews with corporates & NGO’s • Desktop research • CSI dialogue sessions with practitioners • Site visits • Project evaluations • Which resulted in The CSI Toolkit • http://www.csisolutions.co.za/csi-toolkit.php

4. CSI Process

5. CSI in SA: Making an Impact SA has been active in CSI for 15 years Estimated spend in SA in 2012 was about R6.5 billion

6. Biggest Spenders include (Trialogue 2011)

7. CSI Reporting But there is little evidence of impact, as most report on what they are spending and not what they have achieved. Shift focus from reporting on inputs and outputs of spending, to impact. Saying you spent R10 million does not instill confidence in your shareholders. Reporting that you up-skilled 100 people who are now in the job market and contributing to the economy is not only far more meaningful, but also more credible.

8. Understanding Impact • CSI is an investment • Impact • Community: clear, measurable changes in social issues being addressed; • Business: “bottom –line” • E.g. client retention to ensure sustainable commercial success

9. Selecting Projects • Often projects are undertaken due to: • Great professional proposal • Awesome marketing potential • Limited planning and thought about REAL impact • Short sighted, Leads to …

10. Implied Impact • Largely – Storytelling, PR • May benefit in the short term but doubtful that sustainable • Little credibility – people starting to ask questions • Doesn’t inform grant-maker • Impact limited as you don’t know what you don’t know (how to improve, lessons learnt, develop models) • Leads to frustrated grant-maker & beneficiary • Little support and understanding from board

11. Intended Impact • Everything your company does has an impact on: • the environment, community, marketplace and workplace • Clearly identify WHAT you want to achieve? • What do you intend the impact of the intervention to be: • i.e. how will your intervention make an impact. • e.g. Impact= To improve maths and english marks. Or • To train computer skills? • Who agrees that if you have done this you have made a sustainable impact? • Yes/no

12. Impact is the ULTIMATE IMPACT

13. However, we need to ask… Why do you want people to have skills or have good Maths and English marks? If that’s where it ends then all we have achieved is people sitting at home with computer skills, and great Maths marks….

14. Impact = END RESULT Surely, you want people to be employed or start their own businesses to employ people? Now that would be sustainable impact! So once you know what the impact should be and what you need to measure, its easy…

15. What’s MY impact • You can’t measure your impact if you don’t know where it started… • Baseline Study • Snapshot of the before…

16. Example: Baseline

17. How SA companies are doing M&E? (Trialogue, 2011)

18. Impact Process • Step 1 - Set Goals: • For business • For community • Step 2 - Clarify your Intended Impact • Step 3 - Set indicators • Involve stakeholders • Step 3 – Conduct baseline • Step 4 - Value Inputs (cash, time, in-kind) • Step 5 – Ongoing monitoring • Conduct site visits: collecting data • Step 6 - Measure outputs : # beneficiaries • Step 7 - Measure impact

19. Keep it logical INPUT

20. Case Study: Nkosinathi High School • Identifying a school within a 25 km radius of the business • Criteria: a headmaster who is a good leader, and a well-managed school. • Nkosinathi High School, a well-established school located in Inanda. • 1,200 learners, severe overcrowding, not enough high schools in the area • The smallest class had 41 learners and the largest 140 • Matric pass rate was about 60%. • Partnership: Commitment from the Department of Education • allocated more teachers and furniture would be provided for new classrooms. • Agreed to build three new classrooms and a toilet block • The project got started in 2010.

21. Nkosinathi– Impact Evaluation

22. Measuring Project Impact • Planning is the first step in the evaluation process. • We monitor and evaluate in order to ensure the project makes an impact. • Measuring impact is a process, which entails ongoing M&E. • It is not a push button exercise in which you will achieve 100% with your first attempt. • Qualitative can become Quantitative • There is no one way, it can be as long or as in depth as you need it to be.

23. Example: Measuring Impact: Keep it simple! Problem identified: Cholera outbreak every year in a community Why (Analysis of problem): There is a lack of clean drinking water What is the solution (Project): Provision of 10 boreholes to community How will we know it’s a success (Indicators of achievement): There will be a 50% reduction in the number of cholera cases by year 3 Impact (Result): After year 3, there was a 65% reduction in cholera cases

24. M&E in summary

25. To Maximise your Impact Learn from SA & our MANY mistakes! Meet & support your peers – it is a lonely road Don’t see CSI as a purely branding platform where competitiveness takes over Work together and don’t let corporate ego’s take over More can be achieved through partnership

26. IMPACT Outcomes EVALUATE skills Measure Governance investment Responsibility Strategy Measures Development INDICATORS CSI Business benefits capacity monitor Sustainability M&E Baseline Stakeholder IMPACT Benchmark Economic development INDICATORS CSI Connect CSR Exit strategy SROI Planning Sustainable development Transparent Community Benefits