“We change people’s lives for the better”. Easy to say but actually, how is this going to be measured? And how sustainable is such an improvement?
In the end, it is all about accountability. We want to be kept accountable. We owe it to the beneficiaries, to our donors and supporters, and to ourselves.
We decided to use two key parameters: Sustainability and Social Return on Investment (SROI).
1/. Sustainability: thanks to the training program, 90% of the graduates will find a well paid job in the hospitality sector, with excellent chances to make a career.
2/. SROI: It measures the value of our social work in monetary terms. Based on our experience and past projects, we target a long-term SROI-ratio of at least 3:1. This means that for every USD 1 invested, USD 3 is created in benefit for the society. In order to calculate the SROI, we will work with partner companies to track and monitor the monetized value of the achieved impact.
3/. The School’s Sustainability: While the sustainability on a personal / individual level is of utmost importance, it also has to made sure that the school gets self-reliant – in order to be sustainable. The school’s goal is to become completely self-sufficient after 5 years of operation (2020). The strategy for income generating activities has been defined, the first activities will be implemented this year.