Social Return on Investment for funders (2010)

Report
September 2010
New Philanthropy Capital

In this paper, written specifically for funders, New Philanthropy Capital seeks to offer a starting point for discussion about how and when SROI is best used. It complements an earlier paper, aimed at a wider audience.

Social Return on Investment (SROI) is a type of economic analysis that provides a framework for measuring social value. Putting a financial value on social outcomes can help funders to find out if an organisation is worth investing in, understand the impact that grantees are having, and identify where organisations need help.

For SROI to be really useful, funders have to consider whether they find value expressed in financial terms compelling, and whether their grantees’ other stakeholders will find an SROI analysis useful. Many organisations undertake an SROI to attract funding, but it is worth checking first that other potential funders would be interested in the charity’s results being presented in this way.

This report is tagged under:

  • Impact measurement
  • Philanthropy Advice