The commercial value of social impact: balancing purpose and performance

At RPS, we believe that delivering meaningful social outcomes isn’t just good for communities, it’s good for business. When done right, it drives commercial performance.

Read on to explore how social impact is becoming a strategic asset, and how your business can unlock commercial value by embedding purpose into core strategy and operations.

Social impact, ESG and sustainability: all roads lead to purpose

Social impact has been around for a long time, in various forms. The most common references are often used interchangeably: ESG, Sustainability and Impact. That is generally ok. They’re strongly related, broadly all aim for value creation (beyond profits) and it’s good to see people getting interested in achieving non-financial outcomes through business. However, it’s important to understand the distinction and how their development has shaped social impact and in turn ‘purpose’:

Environmental, Social and Governance

Environmental, Social and Governance (or ESG) started as an investment filter in the 1960’s responsible investing movement. It was a risk framework for investors, for example, to give confidence they weren’t inadvertently investing in the Vietnam War.

Today, it is a formal approach to measuring and reporting business impacts, with many ASX200-listed companies aligning their performance to ESG frameworks.

Sustainability

Sustainability has been around for generations (and arguably at least 60,000+ years through Australia’s First Peoples). It was formalised in the United Nations’ 1987 Brundtland Report, defining it as delivering on the needs, wants and means of today without compromising the needs, wants and means of future generations.

Today, the key tenets of inter and intragenerational equity, biodiversity conservation and the precautionary principle are enshrined in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (a common framework for many organisations).

Impact

Impact is well established, especially in academic circles, as a way of framing long-term outcomes for social causes. It is strategic program design, with a logical, cause-and-effect structure, to achieve long-term, intentional outcomes. In its modern form, it is tied to a fast-growing capital market for businesses that align financial and non-financial outcomes through strategic decision making and resource allocation.  That is, businesses with purpose beyond profit.

Investment in impact is delivering financial windfall

When the UK’s then Prime Minister established the Social Impact Investment Taskforce in 2013, it catalysed the delivery of social impact on a global scale. The Taskforce’s focus was on developing ways to direct private capital into the delivery of social outcomes, reducing the requirement of the not-for-profit and community services sector to be the sole solution to pressing social issues. 

Their work laid the foundation for today’s thriving impact investment market. From $USD135 billion in 2015, the sector surged to $USD1.164 trillion by 2021, and reached $USD1.571 trillion in 2024, managed by over 3,900 organisations. With a projected CAGR of 9.5% through 2031, the future looks even brighter. 

A framework of social impact

At RPS, we approach social impact through a place-based lens. Our framework recognises that values are shaped by perspective and context. It acknowledges diverse perspectives on what it means to achieve resilience, liveability and prosperity.

These values are the compass by which we navigate concepts like social impact, alongside other social outcomes such as equity, benefits and licence. At a surface level the interchangeable use and mixed understanding of these topics is ok – at least you’re talking about them.

But when it comes to delivery it’s important you clarify what it is you’re striving for so you can measure your progress, demonstrate your success, and build trust with your stakeholders. This is why working with social impact experts is important. We help you get it right so you can build genuine trust.

A three-step approach for your business

Delivering social impact through your business, in a way that delivers returns for your business, doesn’t need to be complicated. It’s a process of asking the right questions to get the right understanding that will help you narrow down where to focus your efforts.

Identify your commercial driver

Within your business you deploy different initiatives to get different returns. You might build a new product or service to increase sales, bring in a digital platform to improve efficiency, or undertake a marketing campaign to build your awareness in the market.

It is the same approach to identifying what type of program will best achieve your social impact. By identifying your commercial driver, you can narrow your focus to identify how best to achieve your commercial goals. Social impact is intentional, so be intentional in designing the program to ensure it helps you grow.

Know your organisation's focus and strengths

Are you focused on achieving strategic growth? Are you managing daily operations and logistics? Is your priority to protect your position by monitoring and managing risk? It is possible that your business has a mix of all three of these drivers, and it is probable that you will have strength in one area more than others.

It’s important to understand which one is the primary driver for why you’re delivering social impact. By aligning your social impact to your organisation’s focus and strengths, you are increasing the likelihood of a mutually beneficial co-existence between your commercial and social focuses. Success in one will feed success in the other.

Design a social impact program to suit your business needs

The most successful businesses are the ones whose consumers understand what they're doing, why they're doing it, and what it means for them (think McDonalds, Netflix, Apple, Uber). You want the same experience when your consumers, employees, investors and stakeholders look at your social impact program.

It needs to make sense as to why you’re doing it, and it should be an extension of how you already operate or what you’re good at. To build trust that you’re being genuine in driving outcomes (as opposed to greenwashing, black cladding, or virtue signalling) it is important you measure what you treasure and be transparent in the outcomes you achieve.

Ready to transform your impact strategy?

In summary, social impact is far more than a “nice to have.” It’s a strategic growth lever that deepens customer loyalty, energises your teams, sparks innovation and fortifies your brand. RPS’ Social Advisory and Research team brings proven expertise in designing and delivering a full spectrum of programs including impact strategy development, program design, social procurement, community benefit strategies, social impact assessments, and measurement & reporting – across a variety of industries. Together, we’ll co-create initiatives that drive meaningful improvement and sustainable growth for your organisation.

Ready to turn purpose into your next competitive advantage? Let’s connect and build a tailored roadmap that delivers value for your business and the communities you serve.