различных программных решений, среди которых – TOCO, Dylomo, Theory Maker, Changeroo и другие.
Большинство инструментов доступно на английском языке, что облегчает их использование глобальной аудиторией пользователей, но в то же время эти инструменты требуют локализации (по крайней мере, на уровне языка) для более доступного и удобного использования на территории отдельных стран.
Кроме того, важны систематизация и понимание возможностей, ограничений и условий использования каждого из инструментов, чтобы не создавалось ощущение избыточности и хаоса и чтобы выбор инструмента, соответствующего поставленной задаче, был максимально простым. А потому логично, что разработка диджитал-инструментов оценки должна быть следствием тех затруднений, с которыми сталкивается практическая деятельность, требующая оценки воздействия социальных проектов. Проще говоря, методология и технология удобных онлайн-сервисов должна отвечать реальным запросам практики.
Give Me a Tool and I shall Move the World: Digitalization Options for Social Impact Assessment Methods
Lia Sidlina, Natalia Gladkikh
DOI 10.55140/2782-5817-2022-2-1-10-15
Performance measurement is now a necessity rather than a luxury. Without constant monitoring, tracking task completion indicators, assessing the effort input versus the achieved result, evaluating the impact of such results on a project's target audience, and self-reflection there will be no success, funding or attracting new clients and/or beneficiaries in any sphere. Thorough assessment is especially important in social sphere, because in this case performance measurement reflects real changes in the lives of people and entire communities.
Lia Sidlina
Leading Expert, Centre for Innovative Social Ecosystems, Institute of Social and Economic Design at the Higher School of Economics, ESG consultant
Natalia Gladkikh
PhD in Psychology, Leading Expert, Centre for Technological Innovations, Institute of Social and Economic Design at the Higher School of Economics
Despite all the importance of assessing the impact of social projects, there is no visible progress in the related theory and practice. The number of social projects where performance measurement is an integral part of the design process is very scarce. There is a lack of convenient metrics for various project types and spheres of activity, no systematic description of practices and approaches that would take into account state-of-the-art trends and technologies. While large foundations and non-profitable organizations do sometimes find resources for expensive procedures such as external evaluation by a qualified consultant in the sphere of assessment of social projects and programs, smaller entities can only report about the number of events held and services rendered as part of their grant-based projects. They do not have the time, the knowledge, and the resources for anything beyond that.
One possible solution to this challenge may be the use of simple, clear, and above all accessible tools for assessing social projects regardless of their scale, special features, and areas of concern. This mainly refers to interactive IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere around the globe.
A number of important initiatives have already been implemented in this area, and it seems that the number will increase each year. Let's take a closer look at some of the initiatives created over the past year.
THE UNIQUE EVALUATIVE PROFILE (UEP) is a free online tool for various tasks and stages of assessment of socio-economic impact of non-profitable projects launched by the GLADWAY foundation in partnership with the Institute of Social and Economic Design at the Higher School of Economics. It is a methodology for self-assessment of project characteristics in the format of a questionnaire. After answering the questions, the program generates an individual profile which is then used to create a unique algorithm for further evaluation of projects for this specific organization. Depending on the individual and specific characteristics of the project, the evaluation model will include the elements and procedures that are most helpful in improving the efficiency of the project. In other words, the UEP is a unique map of the tasks and directions for monitoring and evaluation for a particular project. It includes the so-called "hygiene factors” – the minimum required activities for each project, and factors specific to the project under evaluation, taking into account the specifics of its target audience, the requests for data from a "third party” (for example, an organization that acts as a grantmaker), the need to assess economic efficiency, etc. The profile includes an assessment of the project according to 13 criteria, including the ability to control results at longterm impact level (outcomes), the limitations in providing feedback to the target audience, the need to assess the economic performance of the project, the availability of a project monitoring system, and others. At least three people from each organization should participate in the development of the UEP: a project manager, a member of the project team working with beneficiaries, and a specialist responsible for external communications. It may also be helpful to include the head of the organization in the team tasked with the development of the UEP. An integral UEP of a project is obtained when team members individually fill out questionnaires, and then the results are compared, thus choosing the optimal result for each criterion. Which, by the way, is not always the result of simple averaging.
https://clck.ru/eBY6B
YADRO ("CORE") IT SERVICE BY THE NUZHNA POMOSH ("NEED HELP") CHARITABLE FUND is one of the largest projects in Russia. It is available only in Russian. The service has several functions. First, it serves as a verification procedure in terms of informational transparency and reputation. Once registered, an organization becomes part of a catalogue of reputable foundations and can launch fundraising using a special service, and apply for support for its project. Second, the service offers an in-build annual report constructor. Third, the service has a multi-functional information management panel where one can find essential information about the project's segments in brief form. It also enables setting notifications that will remind you of important
