It’s pretty common for most grantmakers to track the number of lives touched and dollars distributed to grantees. Those data points are great to know and sound like they have “impact” but they don’t really help grantmakers figure out what to do next. 

A recent Philanthropy Journal article observed that grantmakers’ attitude towards measurement is changing.  They’re starting to use performance measurement to learn and not label, even if the data isn’t demonstrating glowing results. “That means embracing failure, rather than hiding it, in an effort to learn how to avoid future mistakes,” according to the article. If there is collective movement towards this effort, grantmakers are better armed to observe what worked, what didn’t, and to keep doing the things that work.  

With the right attitude, measurement is a useful tool to generate information that will lead to more effective grantmaking and sharing of best practices.  Let’s not allow the paralyzing fear of failure hinder progress. 

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