The measurement of social impact and opportunities for research in business administration

Lazzarini, Sérgio G.

doi:10.1016/j.rauspm.2017.12.010

Cited by 22 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 13 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…We can distinguish between two general approaches to assess impact [140]: a project-based analysis of specific programs, as per the SIA methodology, and a standardized analysis of the social orientation of business models, as per the BIA methodology. Standardized tools to measure impact include the United Nations' Social Development Goals, the Impact Reporting and Investment Standards (IRIS), the Global Impact Investing Report System (GIIRS), and, as mentioned, the B Lab Certification [140]. The BIA has recently been adopted by the United Nations to help companies evaluate their performance against the UN's Social Development Goals, so an integration of these two standards will soon be available.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the other hand, the SME Italian-certified Benefit Corporation sample underlines specific integration levels that are true for Italian B Corps, which can be used as a base point to study evolutions or pinpoint differences. This way, in the future, it may be possible to overcome the comparability limitations of the BIA, and measuring impact can itself be an essential management practice [140].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Sustainability Reporting and Performance Measurement Systems: How do Small- and Medium-Sized Benefit Corporations Manage Integration?

Nigri

Baldo

2018

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Benefit Corporations and B Corps represent alternative models of enterprise, often referred to as “hybrid companies” that bridge the for-profit and not-for-profit models. Italy is the first country outside the USA to pass Benefit Corporation legislation and introduce the Società Benefit. A large number of Italian Benefit Corporations are small- and medium-sized companies (SMEs), since SMEs are widespread within the entrepreneurial fabric and have great relevance in the Italian socio-economic context. A key issue in the emerging debate on small- and medium-sized Benefit Corporations concerns how these companies—with limited reach and considerable financial and human resource constraints—can effectively absorb their added social responsibility. In particular, such firms need to manage their dual mission, integrate social and environmental goals in their business model, and incorporate accountability mechanisms, all while scaling up and garnering the necessary resources to be economically competitive. Starting from these premises, this paper focuses on the performance measurement and reporting systems that are adopted by SMEs that are also Benefit Corporations, and investigates whether benefit impact assessment indicators integrate into an overall sustainability performance management system. To achieve this goal, an exploratory case-based analysis on seven small- and medium-sized Italian-certified Benefit Corporations is presented.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainability Reporting and Performance Measurement Systems: How do Small- and Medium-Sized Benefit Corporations Manage Integration?

Nigri

Baldo

2018

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Following this line, we can discuss SE impact evaluation regarding three key issues: comparability, cost and causality (Lazzarini, 2018). Comparability regards the possibility of establishing comparisons between social value creation initiatives, mostly due to the heterogeneity of the intervention, the social element and the diverse socioeconomic and institutional contexts where the initiatives occur (Kroeger and Weber, 2014).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Measuring impacts of social enterprises: perspectives from Brazilians entrepreneurs and investors

Siqueira

Bin

Stefanuto

2021

SEJ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose The purpose of this study is to characterize output and impact evaluation initiatives from the perspective of entrepreneurs and investors of social enterprises (SE) by highlighting their relevance, implementation processes and consequences. Design/methodology/approach This study adopted a qualitative approach through a multiple case study. This study also analyzed ten SE in five areas and three investors, using semi-structured interviews, codification and content analysis. Findings Evaluation is still at an initial stage in these businesses, and there is a gap between what the field-specific literature proposes and what firms do. Although entrepreneurs feel that evaluation is essential to demonstrate their value and confirm their purpose and impact, it is not a priority. Research limitations/implications Due to the small number of Brazilian enterprises and investors, it is impossible to generalize the results. Practical implications The results are relevant to rethink strategies, processes and methodological tools that seek to portray, more realistically and reliably, the evaluation dimensions in SE. Social implications This study highlights the risk regarding the legitimacy of social impact ventures since, without the due causal inferences, it is not easy to prove the impact they claim to achieve. This situation conducts to the weakening of the ecosystem leading to the emptying of the term impact. Originality/value The main research contributions address the methodologies, practices and evaluation routines of some Brazilian SE and their investors, presenting the characteristics, perceptions and limitations of the studied ventures.

show abstract

“…Vis dėlto mokslininkai dažniau siūlo naudoti individualizuotas poveikių vertinimo metodikas (Lazarini, 2018;Epstein, Yuthas, 2014). Šis būdas padeda spręsti esminę poveikių matavimo problemą -didelius kaštus.…”

Section: Socialinio Verslo Poveikių Vertinimo Prieigosunclassified

“…Poveikiai nevertinami tiek dėl objektyvių, tiek dėl subjektyvių priežasčių: dėl paties poveikio kompleksiškumo, jo migloto, į neapibrėžtą ateitį orientuoto supratimo, laiko ar kitų išteklių trūkumo, poveikio matavimo instrumentų neprieinamumo. Remiantis šiais rezultatais būtų galima plėtoti subjektyviai konstruojamų kliūčių socialinio verslo poveikių vertinimui tyrimą ir kituose sociokultūriniuose kontekstuose, nes, kaip pastebi S. Lazarini (2018), nors poveikių nevertinimo priežastys mokslinėje literatūroje nėra giliai nagrinėjamos, tam yra poreikis siekiant socialinio verslo plėtros ir, atitinkamai, didžiųjų socialinių problemų / iššūkių sprendimo / įveikimo. Be to, tas yra svarbu siekiant paskatinti socialinio verslo mąstymą apie kuriamą pokytį, o ne vien apie produktus, kuriuos svarbu teikti ataskaitose finansuotojui.…”

Section: Diskusija Ir Išvadosunclassified

Lithuanian Social Entrepreneurs’ Experiences of Evaluating the Impact of Their Social Businesses

Pušinaitė-Gelgotė¹,

Pučėtaitė²,

Novelskaitė³

2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper raises research questions on how social business representatives assess the impact of their social businesses and what methods they use to evaluate or measure it. The findings of data analysis of the interviews with 20 social entrepreneurs in Lithuania indicate that social entrepreneurs just begin to measure impact and do not always distinguish it from outcomes and outputs. This can also be influenced by impact measurement methods/tools, which are publicly available for social entrepreneurs or provided by funding organizations. Social entrepreneurs acknowledge that they must create and evaluate this impact, but research findings indicate that they distinguish more reasons not to do that. Impact evaluation is more explicitly revealed when discussing internal (consumers, employees) rather than external stakeholders. Some social entrepreneurs understand the need to evaluate their activities in monetary terms, but they do not do it, which is explained by the early development stage of social businesses in Lithuania. Moreover, social entrepreneurs do not have experience in measuring impact from a multidimensional perspective, i.e., including the social, environmental, cultural, and economic dimensions, and it seems that the necessity of doing this has not come to their awareness yet. The article is concluded with recommendations for strengthening social entrepreneurs’ capabilities in impact evaluation.

show abstract

The measurement of social impact and opportunities for research in business administration

Cited by 22 publications

References 13 publications

Sustainability Reporting and Performance Measurement Systems: How do Small- and Medium-Sized Benefit Corporations Manage Integration?

Sustainability Reporting and Performance Measurement Systems: How do Small- and Medium-Sized Benefit Corporations Manage Integration?

Measuring impacts of social enterprises: perspectives from Brazilians entrepreneurs and investors

Lithuanian Social Entrepreneurs’ Experiences of Evaluating the Impact of Their Social Businesses

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About