Module Overview
This module focuses on the Who dimension of an impact rating. The Who dimension lends important context to the What and How Much dimensions: an investor might value a certain amount of impact more or less based on the characteristics of the stakeholders that experience it. We’ll use the concept of an outcome threshold to think about how to build this consideration into an impact rating.
Investors often consider the extent to which the stakeholders affected by an investment are underserved with regard to a particular outcome or set of outcomes. In order to set up the Who dimension of your impact rating, you will need to decide which outcome or outcomes you will use, and how you will determine the extent to which a stakeholder is underserved with respect to that outcome or set of outcomes.
- Key concept in the Who dimension:
- Threshold: the level or range of performance that divides sustainable from unsustainable performance
- Read: Five Dimensions of Impact – Who
- Read: ABC at Outcome Level
- Explore: Poverty and Inequality Platform (World Bank)
- Explore: Living Wage Calculator (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
- Explore: Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations)
- Read: Finance sector – New guidance on science-based targets and TCFD reporting (Science-based Targets Initiative)
- Read: Setting an Annual Catch Limit (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
Key Concept: Thresholds
For many investors, prioritizing underserved stakeholders from an impact perspective makes intuitive sense. Investors can use thresholds to formalize that intuition in their impact rating.
Building an Impact Rating: Who
Investors may assign more or less value to a given level of impact depending on the stakeholder experiencing it. The Who dimension of an impact rating provides context to the What and How Much dimensions.
Additional Resources
- Read: Five Dimensions of Impact - Who
- Read: ABC at Outcome Level
- Explore: Poverty and Inequality Platform (World Bank)
- Explore: Living Wage Calculator (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
- Explore: Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations)
- Read: Finance sector – New guidance on science-based targets and TCFD reporting (Science-based Targets Initiative)
- Read: Setting an Annual Catch Limit (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
