Social Value for business

Measuring Social Value requires a comprehensive approach that captures both the direct and indirect effects of a business's activities on its stakeholders. This process often involves conducting impact assessments to evaluate how business operations affect the community and the environment. Companies can also utilize stakeholder surveys to gather insights on the perceived benefits and areas for improvement.

Another useful method is the Social Return on Investment (SROI), which quantifies the financial value of social impacts in relation to the investment made. This approach helps businesses understand the effectiveness of their initiatives in creating meaningful social change.

Embedding Social Value in your business planning and governance should be a priority for your leadership team. For maximal impact, consider establishing Social Value as a recurring board agenda item and incorporating it into future budgeting.   

There are many ways to ensure that Social Value is being prioritised at all levels and functions, however. Here are a few routes that our members have gone down: 

• Restructuring their Social Value process internally, with different roles accountable for different regions and an organisation-wide commitment to logging data on our platform.  
• Creating a network to capture Social Value data, feeding it toward a dedicated individual or function responsible for correctly formatting and logging it.  
• Getting the head of procurement significantly involved in Social Value, ensuring the whole function prioritises it.  
• Hiring a sustainable procurement manager to ensure that Social Value never falls through the cracks when procurement managers are strained for resource. 
• Taking a full 360 perspective, considering not only your own Social Value but also that of the projects you deliver and your own supply chain. 

Reporting on Social Value effectively demands transparency, consistency and credibility. Businesses should clearly define what Social Value means within their context and establish specific objectives to guide their efforts. It is crucial to incorporate both quantitative and qualitative data to provide a comprehensive overview of social impacts.

Additionally, companies should commit to regular reporting, which not only demonstrates ongoing progress but also helps in maintaining stakeholder trust and engagement over time.

The Social Value TOM System™ framework is currently designed to measure Social Value delivered within the UK. When it is used within a procurement setting, the TOM System helps the buyer to share Social Value priorities; bidders can meanwhile use the framework to create an appropriate Social Value action plan. This is the case whether the contract is being delivered directly in a community or it is national or online, and it is the responsibility of the buyer to ensure the Social Value requirements are reasonable for the contract type, length and value.  

There are various Social Value initiatives which can be delivered virtually – we saw this in action particularly during the pandemic. Examples include remote mentoring, school workshops, and pro bono business advice sessions. In fact, the lack of travel entailed in these initiatives often makes them more practical than their in-person equivalents. 

Ultimately, if your embedment in local communities is limited, the key thing is to focus on creating a robust and diverse overall Social Value offering – this can more than offset a limited local footprint. And bear in mind that if you’re responding to a tender, the other bidding organisations are in the same boat.