Shared measurement: Greater than the sum of its parts

Shared measurement involves charities and social enterprises that work on similar issues, and towards similar goals, reaching a common understanding of what to measure in terms of the outcomes and impact of their work, and developing the systems to do so.

We believe it has many benefits and in 2013, as part of our work for Inspiring Impact, we explored different approaches and identified important success factors. Three years on, we have re-visited some of those approaches, as well as identifying new examples, to highlight how shared measurement data is being used to drive change and improvement.

We found that data from shared measurement has been used in a variety of ways, including operationally—to improve services—and strategically—to influence policy, fundraising and commissioning practice. There were also a number of wider benefits of the shared measurement approach itself, showing that shared measurement is greater than the sum of its parts.

We call on the sector to engage with shared measurement and help push the agenda forward by accessing the tools and information available, and by opening up discussions on how to adopt these approaches that ultimately help improve the lives of beneficiaries by allowing us to understand what works.