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Impact Metrics for Social Innovation: Barriers or Bridges to Radical Change?

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  • Nino Antadze
  • Frances R. Westley

Abstract

Addressing society's complex problems means fundamentally challenging systems and their economic, social and environmental dimensions. Current measurement tools and evaluation approaches are grounded in conventional accounting practices, and thus tend to a focus on the outcomes of products and services, mainly evaluating economic performance. This presents a particular challenge when it comes to evaluating the impacts of social innovation, which have intended effects beyond economic and financial. This paper describes conventional measurement tools and their limitations for evaluating social impact, and proposes that developmental evaluation is more suited to evaluating social innovation. The consequences of not developing new metrics for social innovation are discussed in terms of the disadvantages for decision-making.

Suggested Citation

  • Nino Antadze & Frances R. Westley, 2012. "Impact Metrics for Social Innovation: Barriers or Bridges to Radical Change?," Journal of Social Entrepreneurship, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 3(2), pages 133-150, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jsocen:v:3:y:2012:i:2:p:133-150
    DOI: 10.1080/19420676.2012.726005
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    1. Antony Bugg-Levine & Jed Emerson, 2011. "Impact Investing: Transforming How We Make Money while Making a Difference," Innovations: Technology, Governance, Globalization, MIT Press, vol. 6(3), pages 9-18, July.
    2. Alnoor Ebrahim & V. Kasturi Rangan, 2010. "The Limits of Nonprofit Impact: A Contingency Framework For Measuring Social Performance," Harvard Business School Working Papers 10-099, Harvard Business School.
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    Cited by:

    1. Takashi Kamihigashi & Kazuhiro Seki & Masahiko Shibamoto, 2017. "Measuring Social Change Using Text Data: A Simple Distributional Approach," Discussion Paper Series DP2017-16, Research Institute for Economics & Business Administration, Kobe University, revised Jul 2017.
    2. Othmar Manfred Lehner & Alex Nicholls & Sarah Beatrice Kapplmüller, 2022. "Arenas of Contestation: A Senian Social Justice Perspective on the Nature of Materiality in Impact Measurement," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(4), pages 971-989, September.
    3. Jorge Cunha & Paul Benneworth, 2020. "How to measure the impact of social innovation initiatives?," International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, Springer;International Association of Public and Non-Profit Marketing, vol. 17(1), pages 59-75, March.
    4. Cristina Puente & María Eugenia Fabra & Cindy Mason & Cristina Puente-Rueda & Maria Ana Sáenz-Nuño & Ramiro Viñuales, 2021. "Role of the Universities as Drivers of Social Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(24), pages 1-14, December.
    5. Joana Dias & Maria Partidário, 2019. "Mind the Gap: The Potential Transformative Capacity of Social Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-17, August.
    6. Clarkin John E. & L. Cangioni Carole, 2016. "Impact Investing: A Primer and Review of the Literature," Entrepreneurship Research Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 6(2), pages 135-173, April.
    7. Ralph Richter, 2018. "The Janus face of participatory governance: How inclusive governance benefits and limits the social innovativeness of social enterprises," Journal of Entrepreneurial and Organizational Diversity, European Research Institute on Cooperative and Social Enterprises, vol. 7(1), pages 61-87.
    8. Maurizio Cisi & Francesca Alice Centrone, 2021. "The Human Capital for Value Creation and Social Impact: The Interpretation of the IR’s HC Definition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-19, June.
    9. Nadia von Jacobi & Enrica Chiappero‐Martinetti & Lara Maestripieri & Toa Giroletti, 2024. "Creating social value by empowering people: a social innovation perspective," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(2), pages 413-439, June.
    10. Laura Rodrigo & Isabel Ortiz-Marcos & Miguel Palacios, 2024. "A typology of social innovation: A comparative study of clustering methodologies," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 20(4), pages 3283-3322, December.
    11. Julia Maria Wittmayer & Tessa de Geus & Bonno Pel & F. Avelino & Sabine Hielscher & Thomas Hoppe & Marie Susan Mühlemeier & Agata Stasik & Sem Oxenaar & Karoline K.S. Rogge & Vivian Visser & Esther Ma, 2020. "Beyond instrumentalism: Broadening the understanding of social innovation in socio-technical energy systems," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/312323, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    12. Elisa Ravazzoli & Cristina Dalla Torre & Riccardo Da Re & Valentino Marini Govigli & Laura Secco & Elena Górriz-Mifsud & Elena Pisani & Carla Barlagne & Antonio Baselice & Mohammed Bengoumi & Marijke , 2021. "Can Social Innovation Make a Change in European and Mediterranean Marginalized Areas? Social Innovation Impact Assessment in Agriculture, Fisheries, Forestry, and Rural Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-27, February.
    13. Viviani, Jean-Laurent & Maurel, Carole, 2019. "Performance of impact investing: A value creation approach," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 31-39.
    14. Magdalena Wójcik-Jurkiewicz & Marzena Czarnecka & Grzegorz Kinelski & Beata Sadowska & Katarzyna Bilińska-Reformat, 2021. "Determinants of Decarbonisation in the Transformation of the Energy Sector: The Case of Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-22, February.
    15. Thomas André, 2015. "Managing Societal Performance of Impact Investing: An Action Research Inquiry," Working Papers hal-01211725, HAL.
    16. David B. Audretsch & Georg M. Eichler & Erich J. Schwarz, 2022. "Emerging needs of social innovators and social innovation ecosystems," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 18(1), pages 217-254, March.
    17. Szijarto, Barbara & Milley, Peter & Svensson, Kate & Cousins, J. Bradley, 2018. "On the evaluation of social innovations and social enterprises: Recognizing and integrating two solitudes in the empirical knowledge base," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 20-32.
    18. Pascale Lehoux & Hudson Pacifico Silva & Renata Pozelli Sabio & Federico Roncarolo, 2018. "The Unexplored Contribution of Responsible Innovation in Health to Sustainable Development Goals," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-21, November.
    19. Thomas André, 2015. "Institutionalization Of Impact Investing Through Societal Management Pressures: An Action Research Inquiry," Working Papers hal-01180070, HAL.
    20. Mario La Torre & Helen Chiappini (ed.), 2020. "Contemporary Issues in Sustainable Finance," Palgrave Studies in Impact Finance, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-3-030-40248-8, February.
    21. Satalkina Liliya & Shpak Nestor, 2018. "Evaluation of the Influence of the Macro-environment on the Social Innovation Activity of Enterprises," Organizacija, Sciendo, vol. 51(1), pages 36-48, February.
    22. Brandstetter Lisa & Lehner Othmar M., 2015. "Opening the Market for Impact Investments: The Need for Adapted Portfolio Tools," Entrepreneurship Research Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 5(2), pages 87-107, April.
    23. Plotnieks Dāvis, 2014. "Mechanisms Fostering Social Entrepreneurship as Potential Instruments for Economic Development: The Eastern Partnership Perspective," TalTech Journal of European Studies, Sciendo, vol. 4(2), pages 34-49, October.

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