Measuring social impact to continue making an impact

The growing demand for accountability and disclosure has placed social impact at the center of attention for businesses, public administrations, and non-profit organizations. However, social impact measurement remains underdeveloped compared to environmental impact measurement, despite the increasing need for reliable metrics.

With their book Impatto sociale. Interventi di inclusione e strumenti per la misurazione, Filippo Giordano and Francesco Perrini address this gap by providing a guide for practitioners, policymakers, CSR managers, and philanthropists who seek to rigorously assess the changes generated by inherently difficult-to-measure actions. “This book combines scientific depth with an accessible writing style, making it both an interesting and useful resource for professionals measuring the social impact of their organizations and for researchers exploring these topics,” writes Francesco Billari, Rector of Bocconi University, in the introduction.

Today, addressing the challenge of social impact measurement is crucial for all economic actors. Public administrations need it to adopt a systemic approach and assess long-term effects if they want to optimize resources and policies. Non-profit organizations, evolving from mere service providers to true agents of change, must be able to account for the magnitude of the transformations they drive. Businesses increasingly recognize the interconnection between economic and socio-environmental value, integrating social impact measurement into their sustainability strategies.

The first part of the book provides a general framework for measuring social impact, while the second focuses on interventions aimed at rehabilitating and reintegrating individuals in the penal system. The book concludes with a practical guide on designing and evaluating inclusion initiatives.

• Publisher: EGEA
• Publication date: December 2024
• ISBN/EAN: 9788823889255
• Pagine: 196
• Formato: paper, e-Pub, Digitabook

FILIPPO GIORDANO is Full Professor of Business Administration at LUMSA University in Rome, where he directs the interdisciplinary research center on social and penal systems Diritto Alla Speranza. His research and teaching focus on public and non-profit management, social enterprise governance, corporate sustainability, prison management, and the evaluation of social inclusion projects. He is a research affiliate at Bocconi University's ICRIOS research center and has been teaching at SDA Bocconi School of Management.

FRANCESCO PERRINI is Full Professor of Business and Management at Bocconi University’s Department of Management and Technology. He is Associate Dean for Sustainability, DEI, and ICE (Innovation and Corporate Entrepreneurship) at SDA Bocconi School of Management, where he leads the Strategy & Operations area, coordinates the ESG Knowledge Platform, and serves as Scientific Director of the Sustainability Lab. He is also Academic Director of the Master in Sustainability Management and the Master's in Transformative Sustainability, a joint program with Politecnico di Milano.