Author Archive:
David Bonbright
The Ultimate Question 2.0 – How net promoter companies thrive in a customer-driven world
If you suspect that measurement and management are the weak links in philanthropy and development today, then you will probably want to read The Ultimate Question 2.0 as soon as possible. It is a clear, …
Bellagio Initiative: when measurement becomes our new best friend
What do you get when you convene a conversation with 40 or so philanthropy and development professionals from 20 or so countries about the future of their fields, all over two days? The Rockefeller Foundation, …
McKinsey’s Learning for Social Impact Initiative
The 20-year-and-counting infatuation our profession has had with impact has now taken a welcome and clearly discernible shift towards performance, learning and improvement[1] and nothing represents this trend better than the Social Sector Office of …
Civil society vs markets – a false dichotomy?
The need for greater effectiveness in the non-profit sector and for organizations to measure this is receiving growing attention. While no one seriously disputes that organizations should assess their work, the main ground of the …
A last word …
At the risk of straining the patience of Alliance readers, I write to underscore what I believe is a powerful point of contention – and potentially maturation – in philanthropy that has been clearly framed …
Measurement vs action: how much money should we spend figuring out what works?
Few would argue against measurement in theory. But anyone involved in philanthropic measurement knows that the best evaluations are very expensive and time-consuming. Thus the question isn’t whether measurement is good but whether rigorous impact …
Objects or subjects?
I was struck by the similar use of the term ‘beneficiary’ in the letters from Felicitas von Peter and Theresa Lloyd in your September 2008 issue. While promoting different arguments to improve philanthropy, both letters …
The mixed impact of impact evaluation
Impact evaluation is a reality in the non-profit world, as is evident from this issue of Alliance. We do not actually know, however, how those who work in the non-profit field perceive it. Do those …
Taking evaluation seriously – still a way to go
As is clear from this issue of Alliance, impact evaluation is a growing preoccupation in the non-profit world. To get a wider perspective on how it is viewed and how well it’s working, during September …
Making social investment decisions – What do we need to know?
This article is an attempt to chronicle the emergence of a new generation of concepts, tools, platforms and organizations designed to measure quality social change work. To give away the end of the story, it …
