INTHEBLACK August 2024 - Flipbook - Page 20
F E AT U R E
“We are trying to deliver more than just commercial
profit. We are trying to deliver social outcomes or
‘betterment’ for our members and the community in
which we operate. We realised that, if it was important
to us, we needed to measure it. Otherwise, it was
subjective rhetoric rather than discipline.”
ADAM VISE, AUSTRALIAN UNITY
Social impact is now being mapped
and reported by an increasing number
of organisations. However, in an era of rising
scepticism and declining trust, organisations
must adapt to the challenge of reporting
on the impact of their social programs
with authenticity and integrity.
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SOCIAL IMPACT EVOLUTION
The term “social impact” was first used
in 1969, during a seminar on ethical
investments held at Yale University.
It broadly defines how an organisation’s
actions – or inactions – affect people.
While earlier efforts to report social
impact centred on improving issues such
as labour conditions, gender inequality
and charitable outcomes, the focus has
shifted toward a more active, positive
process that both internal and external
stakeholders increasingly expect.
Data from research firm McCrindle
shows 87 per cent of consumers agree that
social impact reporting builds trust with
an organisation. Among younger Australians,
93 per cent of millennials are more likely
to engage with an organisation that clearly
communicates its social impact.
Dr David Cooke, executive director of
ESG Advisory, says the understanding of
social impact has evolved significantly.
“I think the early blossoming of interest
in social impact was the low-hanging fruit –
things like forming charity partnerships
and being able to put pictures in annual
reports or on your website of team-building
days where you worked with a charity
partner,” Cooke says.
“You used to see photographs of people
handing over giant novelty cheques, but that
is disappearing to some extent and was a very
simplistic contribution to society. It has moved
from a discretionary initiative to much more
of a societal expectation of companies.”
Adam Vise, group treasurer and general
manager of strategy and impact at Australian
Unity, says the social dimension of ESG
has been slower to catch on because it is often
attached to the political agendas of individuals.
“That cannot be what enterprise is about
if it is going to make a difference for its
stakeholders,” Vise says.
MEASURE WHAT MATTERS
Australian Unity developed its CSV
framework in conjunction with social
impact experts Social Ventures Australia
(SVA). It launched its first social impact
report in 2021 and, for the 2023 financial
year, it delivered A$1.76 billion in
community and social value, according
to its Our Impact 2023 Report.
“We realised we needed to have a discipline
methodology,” Vise says. “SVA stood out,
in part because of a belief that the discipline
of financial analysis could be applied to
the achievement of social value analysis.
Australian Unity’s CSV framework
measures 226 outcomes for stakeholders
across its areas of wealth, health and care.
“We are trying to deliver more than just
commercial profit,” Vise says. “We are trying
to deliver social outcomes, or ‘betterment’,
for our members and the community in
which we operate.
“We realised that, if it was important to us,
we needed to measure it. Otherwise, it was
subjective rhetoric rather than discipline.”
Vise adds that the social responsibility
of businesses to increase profit is “very hard
to argue against until you can find something
else that you can pursue in a measurable,
evidence-based way”.
“You therefore have to start with the
outcomes for your stakeholders and
objectively try to enhance their outcomes,”
he says. “The moment you start measuring
something other than profit with the same
