NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, August 18, 2016

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Aug. 16, 2016 – The Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) today published a new report, The Business Value of Impact Measurement, which outlines how impact measurement and management can generate business value for impact investors and their investee companies.

This innovative practice represents yet another way impact investors are integrating the social, environmental, and financial aspects of their investments to complement and enhance each other, ultimately further benefiting communities and the planet. Impact measurement is considered a hallmark of impact investing as it demonstrates an investor’s commitment to the social and environmental performance of their investments.

This report takes a step beyond the fundamental uses of impact measurement—to monitor, report, and improve impact—and highlights how individual investors are applying impact data to generate business value. ‘Business value’ is defined as factors that are advantageous to an investor’s or investee’s business, including both direct economic value and strategic benefits that indirectly influence long-term viability.

The GIIN’s The Business Value of Impact Measurement study finds that there are five major drivers of value that impact investors and investees derive from impact measurement and management.