Practical Impact Methodology.
Why Impact Metrics?
GIF uses an innovative approach to forecast, track and evaluate results across our investment cycle.
For project selection and appraisal
GIF assesses which proposals offer the greatest potential for impact
To credibly forecast long-term impact
Based on current information, GIF assesses what the long-term impact of our investment will be
To track portfolio performance
As projects enter, evolve, succeed or fail, GIF assesses the overall anticipated impact of all the investments in our portfolio
To balance rigour with practicality
GIF seeks to gather the data we need to assess impact in a way which is appropriate given the resources an innovation may have and the size of our investment
The Measurement Challenge: Comparing disparate outcomes
Problem: ‘people reached’ is an inadequate measure
Some innovations have profound effects on a few people; others have modest impacts on many people.
How do we compare different kinds of impact?
Solution:
- Measure depth of impact in a way that is comparable across projects
Tracking progress towards long term impact
Problem
It can take 10-30 years to achieve scale.
We need to credibly predict impact long before it is actually observed.
We want to motivate attention to total portfolio impact, knowing that some of our investments will fail, but others could have extraordinary impact.
Solution
Risk-adjusted projections, updated as data improves and risks are resolved.
THE SOLUTION: Practical Impact defined
Practical Impact focuses on order of magnitude
