The big picture:
Most foundations don’t have a chief impact officer, which is a missed opportunity. If philanthropy is to truly drive change, we must treat impact with the same rigor business leaders apply to growth and profitability.
Why it matters:
- Philanthropy invests millions of dollars annually, but without accurate measurement, it’s hard to know what’s working.
- Many nonprofits are understaffed and underfunded, which can lead to relying on outdated methods for capturing impact, like handwritten notes rather than digital records. This makes it difficult to assess trends, track progress and scale success.
- Without data, we’re less able to determine what’s working and where we may need to pivot. And without a chief impact officer, there’s less accountability ensuring grant dollars deliver their intended outcomes.
What’s needed:
- A mindset shift: philanthropy must be run more like a business.
- Dedicated leadership: having someone solely focused on impact provides rigor and consistency across all investments.
- Partnership: foundations should help grantees modernize how they measure, document, and share their outcomes. A chief impact officer can look at readily available standardized tools, such as the
UCLA Loneliness Scale , to provide an easy and repeatable process for measuring outcomes.
The bottom line:
Impact isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s the reason philanthropy exists. By elevating the role of chief impact officer and supporting partners in measuring outcomes, we can ensure charitable dollars create lasting change.