The Gamma Model for Impact Measurement in Fund Investments

Abstract

The paper discusses the challenges of social and environmental impact measurement for fund investments. It suggests that information needs on social and environmental impact are different for various stakeholders in the impact investing value chain and that ways of measuring and expressing social/environmental impact should duly take into account such differences if they were meant to result in meaningful indicators. The paper discusses how the gamma model for impact measurement exposed in the research paper "In search of gamma - an unconventional perspective on impact investing" (U. Grabenwarter/H. Liechtenstein 2011) can be applied to the space of fund investments.

Keywords: Impact Measurement; Impact Investing; Impact Objectives; Performance measurement, social impact, environmental impact

JEL Classification: G28, I28, I38