True Impact Report Feedback Guidance: Updated Platform

As you review grantee reports, you may want to consider some key questions which we have outlined below. Feel free to utilize the proposed template responses and customize as needed.

Report Section

Key Questions

Template Response Options

Description:

Is the report description sufficient? If you were not previously aware of the program, would this description provide you with enough information about what the program does and what it’s trying to achieve?

  • Please provide sufficient detail so a person unfamiliar with the program will have a general understanding of how it works and what it's trying to achieve

Dates:

Do the report dates match the content in the report?
  • Please update your dates based on the program implementation or funding period. 

Location:

Are the locations listed correctly? These should represent where the implementation occurs.

  • Is your program being implemented in multiple distinct locations? If so, enter each location in separate location fields.

Activities:

   

Impact Summary:

Impact Model

Is an appropriate Cause Category and impact model selected? 

  • Please review the funder's priority services, linked on the resource page, to align this report with your funder's requirements.

Impact Summary:

Impact Model

Is the end beneficiary appropriately identified?

  • Please make sure to select the term you use for the end beneficiary of your program - this should be those who's lives are improved because of your programming.

Impact Summary: Program Development

Ensure that the Program Development indicators are representative of internal capacity building / organizational efforts related to supporting this program. These indicators should describe how the program itself is strengthened in order to provide services to beneficiaries. The Program Development section is optional.

  • The Program Development section should focus on how your program is strengthened in order to reach your beneficiaries. What program resources will be developed to help deliver information to your stakeholders? If you'd like to remove this indicator, you can unselect it. 

Impact Summary:

Learn & Act

The Learn and Act sections are optional. Does the report need these sections but they are missing? Or more commonly, does the report include them but they are unnecessary and feel duplicative of other information included in other sections? Not all programs need to include indicators capturing behavior change, such as some education models.

  • Please consider whether Learning is a part of your model. If not, please remove by selecting "No". However, if there is a learning aspect to your program, please let us know so we can direct you to update the definition. 
  • Please consider whether behavior change is a part of your model. If not, please remove the indicator by selecting "No". Note that many educational programs do not include an Act stage as students are impacted directly by learning. However, if there is a behavior change aspect to your program, please let us know so we can direct you to update the definition. 

Impact Summary:

Social Impact

Based on your understanding of the program through the program description and intervention section, are there any Social Impact indicators missing from the logic model? Does the logic model sufficiently capture the impacts of the program and illustrate how lives are improved?

  • Please include the indicator {indicator name} to best capture the full story of your program's anticipated outcomes. You can search for additional social impacts by clicking on the "Add other impacts not listed here" and then search for other indicators that may better capture the true impact of your program.

Impact Summary:

Indicator Definition

Have they adequately defined the indicator under the “Success Criteria?” This section should provide you with a clear threshold for success to understand the indicator and how they are measuring success in their work. If needed, backup documentation can be attached to provide further context.

  • Please define how much an individual participant has to engage to be considered successfully served. A good way to do this is to start the info in Step 1 with "A person is successfully reached when.." and continue with ... they attend 85% of the program, or .. available in their Zip Code, or ... they are successfully enrolled.

Impact Details:

Forecast

Are the forecasted or final indicator values reflective of the outcomes to be achieved/achieved during the reporting period designated on the report? Recall, the reporting period, indicator values, and budget should all align so that a cost per outcome can be calculated.

  • Please align your indicator values with the cost of implementation (Budget) during a specific time period (Overview > Dates). Are the forecasted or achieved indicator values reported all meant to occur or be caused during this designated reporting period and within the associated budget?
  • For program periods not yet complete, your report will forecast the impacts caused during this selected reporting period. This is an important distinction to note as there are often medium or long term impacts that are caused within a reporting period but not yet realized. Please update your forecasts accordingly.

Impact Details:

Measurement Category

Are the selected measurement categories (Direct Measurement, Estimated Based on Data, Guess) appropriate? Have they adequately described their measurement approach under the “Sources/Assumptions?” Is backup documentation provided if needed? All indicators in Program Development should be Directly Measured.

  • Please adjust your measurement to {Guess / Estimate / Measured}

View measurement options here


  • Please update your measurement categories to represent how you plan to measure your outcomes by the end of your report period. It seems likely that many of your outcomes will be measured through tracking tools or estimated through existing evidence. 

Beneficiaries

Do the selected demographics include populations indicated by the grant agreement? Where possible/relevant, we encourage reports to include gender, socio-economic status, ethnic background, and age along with a brief written narrative about their beneficiaries.

  • Please provide additional  information on your program's target beneficiaries. This is an opportunity to provide a more detailed picture of the people whose lives are being improved by your program, which can make your social impact report more relatable and compelling to readers.

Budget

Is the budget representative of the entire program during this reporting period? If the budget value is the same as the investment amount, this suggests that this investment is the only donor to the program.

  • Please ensure this budget entry (and the other line items) captures the full cost of the program overall, not just an allocation of a grant received.
  • Ensure that your program budget is aligned with the selected reporting period. It’s important to include only and all costs associated with the specific reporting period in your report.

Narratives

(final reports only)

For final reports, there’s an option to include a brief lesson learned, success story, and photo. Where possible, encourage these sections to be completed.

  • This field is intended to identify opportunities for improvement. If you were starting this program over from scratch, what advice would you give yourself or others (i.e., tips to help maximize program success)?
  • This field is intended to describe an example of a successful program outcome, to help a reader relate to the value being generated. Can you revisit this field and share a success story?
  • Please consider uploading a photo to help a reader relate to the success story you've entered.

Custom Questions

(standard reports don’t include these)

If the report has any custom questions included as designated by the donor, ensure that anything required has been completed.

  • Please complete all custom questions that are found at the end of the report.