An outcome-based vision for non-profits
There are a few million non-profits operating globally
One may ask, what is the impact of all these organisations?
What has been achieved?
What impact has been created?
What contribution has been made to society, the environment and economy?
These questions are difficult to answer
Not because there the answer is no
But because no system measured it
Because most of their activities and outcomes have not been measured, reported and aggregated historically
Because there lies no standard measurement and reporting guidelines to report on activities and outcomes
There have been many reasons for it; lack of awareness, no incentives, lack of technology, and lack of urgency, no regulatory mandate, convenience, lack of capability and a few more
Regulation until recently only concerned with
Measuring and disclosing
Money in money out
Assets and liabilities
Of non-profits
The above questions are difficult to answer
Because outcomes are not additive or aggregable as outputs
How can one add saving lives with employment created with emissions reduced?
Its logically and dimensionally inconsistent, and practically useless
So where do they contribute the most
Non-profits emerged and chose to exist where governments and markets don’t, can’t and won’t
But still a common expectation from a non-profit is to generate revenue and scale impact
To follow a market-based approach for financial sustainability
To be corporatized themselves by selling products and services
To adopt the market driven approaches and management best practices
How can they become market driven having been emerged
to serve what markets could not or
to serve the adverse effects of the markets
on people, environment and communities
Accepting modern management best practices and attempts to corporatize themselves
Is going against their DNA
But still most funders, volunteers and partners
Well educated in traditional management
Well trained in large corporates
Come with intellectual and moral superiority
Come with tips, suggestions and recommendations
As if their education or training qualified them to do anything
Begone the burdens of corporatization or adopt traditional management practices blindly
For what matters only and only are the outcomes
The real outcomes in people’s lives, in environment and in communities
And the quest to increasing the breadth and depth of these outcomes
In a way that is resource efficient
For non-profits to be true to their DNA is to focus on their outcomes
And increasing the breadth and depth of them
To not be bothered by scale expectations at all
For if what matters is depth of outcome
Would one distribute 100 children bananas or save lives of 1 individual
One can develop clever ways to associate monetary price on each outcome to make them comparable, but are they?
To not be bothered with corporatisation at all
Because the nature of learning needs to reverse
Corporates, traditional management education and industry
Have little to teach non-profits
But have much more to learn themselves
To not be bothered with financial sustainability
For the financial sustainability will come
Not from selling products and services
But from the high-quality outcomes
Measured reliably
Priced accurately
And traded efficiently
This is the only way to securitise outcomes
This is the only way for the non-profits to be productive assets in the economy
This is the only way for non-profits to contribute in a way that is measurable, meaningful and aligned to their DNA
Not by becoming the assets that generate cashflows through sale of products and services
But by becoming the assets that generate cashflows through the sale of their outcomes
Outcomes that are measured reliable and priced accurately