Social Performance Overview

Social performance (SP), or the social bottom line, is about making an organization's social mission a reality. The Social Performance Task Force defines social performance as:

"The effective translation of an institution's social mission into practice in line with accepted social values that relate to serving larger numbers of poor and excluded people; improving the quality and appropriateness of financial services; creating benefits for clients; and improving social responsibility of an MFI."

Traditional evaluation has focused on end results and impact. However, impact is just one element of social performance. Social performance looks at the entire process by which impact is created. It therefore includes analysis of the declared objectives of institutions, the effectiveness of their systems and services in meeting these objectives, related outputs (for example, reaching larger numbers of very poor households) and success in effecting positive changes in the lives of clients.

Social performance management is an institutionalized process that involves setting clear social objectives, monitoring and assessing progress towards achieving these, and using this information to improve overall organizational performance. A social performance assessment enables an institution to measure its social performance relative to its social mission and objectives.