Friends, I’m excited to update you today on the progress of the Network Social Performance Management (SPM) project – an initiative being led by a Network-wide task force.

OUR AIM
Our aim with SPM is simple: we want to get better at measuring, understanding and reporting on how well we are doing in achieving our mission to provide opportunities for people in poverty to transform their lives.

THE SPM DASHBOARD
This taskforce, chaired by Calum Scott of Opportunity Australia and with many representatives from both Implementing and Support Members, has designed a dashboard of social indicators. This dashboard will help us measure and better understand:

• who we are reaching (e.g. income levels of clients, client circumstances)
• how well we are providing services (are we meeting best industry standards for providing loans and other services?)
• how are we transforming clients lives?

The end goal is for our partners to have a standard way of reporting on social indicators and for us as a Network and social investor, to be able to report aggregated and consistent social performance data.

SPM SURVEY
In developing of the dashboard, Calum and team have taken account of SPM best practise across the microfinance sector. The Taskforce is now consulting widely across Opportunity Network to get feedback on what is being proposed. In particular, a survey has just been sent to all Implementing Members. If you have been asked for feedback and have yet to respond, please give this your fullest consideration and respond. If you have questions about the survey please contact Calum Scott.

IMPLEMENTATION
Just as important will be the implementation of this dashboard of indicators. We are aware that measuring and reporting social outcomes is not straightforward. The SPM taskforce will look at what each of our partners will need in order to develop the capacity and ability to implement the dashboard and report on it. The timeframe for this will be two years.

We will be discussing the SPM program further at the Global Leadership Conference in September – I’m looking forward to engaging with you all on this important subject.