Impact investments are investments made with the intention to generate positive, measurable social and environmental impact alongside a financial return. Impact measurement and management (IMM) is the key defining feature of impact investing. For a majority of impact investors, IMM is important for understanding ‘whether they are making progress towards their impact goals’.

An IIC- KPMG research survey on the ‘State of Impact Measurement and Management in India’ revealed that a majority of impact investors in India have a sound IMM strategy in place. Our respondents have a clear impact thesis and a majority use sophisticated tools/ frameworks to capture impact data. However, there is a large scope for refinement.

The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has provided a much needed common language to compare impact outcomes across the globe. While the industry players have attempted to align their impact reporting with IRIS and other global standards, the Indian context poses its own unique challenges to 100% alignment.

Our respondents echo that a universal mandated impact measurement standard like the financial reporting standards will be a boon in promoting impact measurement and monitoring but are cognizant of the cost attached to a robust IMM strategy.