Sustainable
business
that helps
society thrive
What is Social Value?
Social Value isn’t rocket science: we work with you to make it understandable, measurable and achievable.
We define it as ‘the positive impact created for society by the actions and legacy of an organisation or individual’.
Consider what social value means for your organisation specifically. How do you create positive impact for your suppliers, employees, communities, and the environment?
ESG – Environmental, Social, Governance – is an umbrella term often used by large organisations to help frame the way they report.
Social Value is the Social strand of ESG. Going a little deeper, ESG was originally conceived with Risk avoidance in mind, while social value is a more positive way of constructing the narrative – by looking at the value you can proactively create.
Sustainability is often used interchangeably to refer to either social sustainability or – more frequently – environmental sustainability. A way of operating that can be maintained without depleting resources.
If you’ve come to us for advice on any of the above, you’re in the right place. Together with our partners, we’ve got all angles covered.
Our ‘Wheel of Value’ shows the ten themes that businesses can impact through their everyday actions.
Some themes might feel more relevant to you than others – and that’s OK.
But if you’ve only considered Volunteering, Community and the Environment, you could be overlooking large chunks of hidden value.
You create ‘Economic’ value, for example, when you commission local SMEs, micro businesses or social enterprise.
What value could you be missing?
Rather than choosing a single approach, you’ll want to blend methodologies to arrive at a set of measures that are right for your organisation. These need to align to your activities, your audiences and your strategic business goals.
What’s it worth?
Here are a few examples. All of your activities can be measured and quantified in this way, enabling you to report additional value beyond profit.
Source: TOMs framework 2022-23
What are the benefits?
Social Value isn’t a ‘nice to have’; it creates more competitive, better performing, sustainable organisations. In short, it’s the future of good business.
