You want to create a social impact calendar, but where do you start?

In my experience, it's crucial to first define what “impact” means for you. And in order to achieve that it is prudent to find an intersection point of the impact you want to create, your own personality and the resources that can help you create that impact. Based on that intersection it becomes visible what kind of activities and initiatives you will be taking, risks and rewards attached, effort vs outcome of those activities. This intersection point sets the direction to further drill down into coming up with an impact calendar, defining KPIs, managing resources for impactful execution and be able to measure the effectiveness.

Creating a social impact calendar begins with identifying relevant impact/policy areas that you want to focus on. Research significant international days or local events dates, then prioritize those aligning with your organization's mission. Plan engaging activities such as digital or in-person activations for each event. Organize these activities into a calendar, including details like dates and locations. Collaborate with other organizations and promote the calendar through various channels. Evaluate each event's effectiveness and adjust future activities accordingly to continually improve the impact calendar.

While defining the impact, the very first thing one needs to understand is what is being addressed here- deprivation or discrimination or both. And then whether it is being addressed as individual level or at any social identity level or both. And then whether the cause is structural or behavioural or both; And then whether the addressing is done from the location of marginalised as Citizen or as Customer/provider matrix; In these answers, rest your ideology with which you define your impact. Without doing this foundational understanding, you will just be playing ringa ringa roses!

My advice is to schedule your objectives around major dates that are associated with the causes you believe in, e.g., awareness days / important events. This will make sure that your social impact calendar is pushed from within and fits in with larger social events. To make a bigger splash, join forces with well-known campaigns / international movements that are in line with your organization's goals. Another option is to create your own themed campaigns/events to get people talking and involved. Increase the impact/reach of your projects by working with partners in and outside of your industry. Not only can a social impact calendar help you stay organized, but it can also showcase your organization as a force for positive social change.

Defining impact goes in alignment to your organization's ethos, social goals and social mission. Once these are clear, it is simply a process of understanding "What to the Why" E.g. Social mission of an organisation can be behavioral change of children in a particular area. The social impact will always align with the change in the chosen demographics. Different frameworks can be chosen to define the duration, intensity, latency, complexity, consistency, flexibility and maintenance.

To start a social impact calendar, the first step is identifying key stakeholders, including community members, volunteers, partners, beneficiaries, donors, and relevant authorities. Involving these stakeholders from the beginning ensures a more inclusive and effective strategy, considering their perspectives and needs. Collaboration with diverse stakeholders enhances support, builds partnerships, and aligns efforts toward shared goals, maximizing the impact of planned initiatives on the social impact calendar.

Your impact calendar should be focused on two things: major events for your impact topic and your audience. The permutations of these two are what will be the judge of what belongs on your calendar. I run a female empowerment organization, so my major events are, for example, International Day of the Girl or International Women's Day. My audiences are our beneficiaries, partner companies, mentors, etc. Then, I filter each of the important dates by the audience that needs to be targetted by each one of them.

Il est crucial d'identifier toutes les parties prenantes impliquées dans votre initiative. Cela peut inclure des bénéficiaires directs, des partenaires potentiels, des experts du domaine et même des adversaires potentiels. En comprenant les besoins, les motivations et les contraintes de chacune de ces parties prenantes, vous pourrez élaborer des stratégies plus efficaces et engager des collaborations fructueuses. Par exemple, dans le cadre d'un projet visant à lutter contre la pauvreté, les parties prenantes pourraient inclure des ONG, des entreprises locales, des gouvernements et des membres de la communauté.

After mapping potential stakeholders, I suggest (if possible) to run a “focus group” like session(s) (whether in person or online) to identify real needs of each stakeholder group. Our understanding of social impact and people’s needs may vary from reality. Follow up and adjust in next stages.

In crafting our social impact calendar, engaging with our diverse stakeholders—employees, customers, partners, and the community—was crucial. By utilizing tools like Stakeholder Maps and Empathy Maps, we gained insights into their perspectives, refining our approach to ensure it resonates deeply and inclusively. This step not only informed our impact strategies but also fostered a collaborative spirit, enhancing our efforts to drive meaningful change together.

Too many people set their calendar according to set piece events and gatherings. They will say, there is X convention here or Y summit there and then plan activations across them all. This is a mistake. It will create a lot of busy work but you will be just one more of the pavilions, stands and participants. Instead focus on the agenda and impact you want to shape. Then determine which moments are critical to that end. For example, is it a particular moment where the funders or decision makers you’re aiming to influence gather? Pick a few and then go all in. If you try and do everything you will fail.

To create a social impact calendar, start by setting clear and measurable goals aligned with your organization's mission. Identify key milestones that mark significant progress toward these objectives. Break down larger goals into smaller, achievable tasks, assigning realistic timelines to each. Ensure that your milestones are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Regularly review and adjust your calendar as needed to stay flexible and responsive to changing circumstances. This approach helps provide a structured roadmap for your social impact initiatives, enabling effective planning, execution, and evaluation.

It is essential to understand the key material issues, without that knowing your true impact is impossible. And speaking to the right people i.e. stakeholder groups is imperative in this instance.

Setting SMART goals for our social impact calendar provided a clear roadmap for our initiatives. By aligning these goals with both our impact vision and stakeholder needs, we ensure our efforts are focused and impactful. Utilizing the OKR Framework, we've defined precise objectives and key results, ensuring our actions are measurable and time-bound. This structured approach not only guides our progress but also keeps us accountable, enabling us to monitor, evaluate, and adapt our strategies to maximize our social impact.

La mesure de l'impact (des impacts) et des KPI clairs et précis garantira le succès de vos engagement et la mesure de vos progrès. Vos indicateurs sont-ils spécifiques ? Sont-ils mesurables ? Sont-ils réalisable (objectivement) ? Leur attente est-elle pertinente ? Sont-ils inscrit dans le temps (avec un début / une fin) ? Le tableau de bord de vos indicateurs devra être mis en place t?t dans votre démarche d'impact. Il permettra de mesurer vos succès, vos défis, d'ajuster vos actions et de compléter votre reddition de compte.

Add long-term, sustainable projects to your calendar instead of just one-off events. Put your energy into developing a plan that covers all four seasons, tackles systemic problems, and encourages lasting transformation. Think about the most important ways your organization can help out on a regular basis, whether through campaigning, educational programs / community relationships. You can show that you are dedicated to social improvement on an ongoing basis and increase the impact of your efforts by scheduling sustained activities into your schedule. This method promotes long-term good effects by strengthening linkages with communities, stakeholders, and beneficiaries—all of which are in line with sustainability principles.

One thing I found helpful is employing a comprehensive approach to planning by breaking down social impact initiatives into actionable tasks. By utilizing tools like the Project Plan and Gantt Chart, I am able to establish clear responsibilities, roles, and expectations for each team member. This ensures efficient resource allocation, encompassing time, finances, materials, and skills. Embracing a structured planning process is pivotal for achieving goals and milestones in social impact works.

Getting down to the granular, I find Gantt charts have been especially useful in managing team sprints and tracking progress towards an objective. You can download basic templates for them from Microsoft and those are sufficient enough!

Une planification minutieuse des activités et des ressources est essentielle pour garantir le succès de votre calendrier d'impact social. Cartographiez les étapes nécessaires pour atteindre vos objectifs, identifiez les ressources nécessaires (financières, humaines, matérielles) et planifiez leur allocation de manière efficace. Par exemple, si vous organisez une campagne de sensibilisation à la santé mentale, vous devrez planifier les activités telles que des ateliers, des conférences et des séances de sensibilisation, ainsi que les ressources nécessaires telles que des orateurs, des lieux et des matériaux promotionnels.

In building our social impact calendar, meticulous planning of activities and resource allocation was crucial. Utilizing tools like Gantt Charts and Kanban Boards, we meticulously outlined the tasks, assigned responsibilities, and managed the necessary resources, ensuring every action was purposefully aimed at achieving our SMART objectives. This structured approach not only streamlined our efforts but also maximized the effectiveness and impact of our initiatives, demonstrating the power of strategic planning in driving meaningful change.

Effectively communicating social impact work entails crafting a compelling narrative around your mission and accomplishments. Utilize storytelling, backed by data, to showcase tangible outcomes and engage stakeholders. Visuals like photos and videos make the impact tangible, while engaging diverse audiences through multiple channels such as social media and newsletters is crucial. Transparency and tailored messaging are key, along with inviting participation and feedback. Continuously evaluate and iterate your communication strategy to ensure it effectively conveys the difference you're making and inspires others to join your cause.

O primeiro passo é definir a história e os resultados-chave a serem transmitidos. Em seguida, escolher os canais e plataformas mais adequados para atingir o público-alvo é crucial, seja por meio de vídeos, relatórios ou mídias sociais. Incluir formulários de feedback, online ou offline, facilita a obten??o de contribui??es dos stakeholders, promovendo sua participa??o ativa. Por fim, uma abordagem estruturada e focada em resultados é essencial para maximizar o alcance e a eficácia da comunica??o do impacto do projeto.

I'd say the most important aspect is transparency and effective communication around limitations & missed targets with an outline of why this happened, which builds trust in your community. The recent admission by Lego is a good example of the reality to the scale of the challenge and an apt demonstration of even large scale brands inability to manifest solutions where there simply are none. We are limited within the context in which a goal or ambition lives and we are all part of a system on which we depend, which is why we as a consultancy are focused on the whole. The younger generations demand transparency and they are driving economic demand for positive impact as a whole. For them transparency is integral.

Do not forget about your key stakeholders. May you need different content for internal and external. I belive, that storytelling is the key, when we talk about the communication of social impact project. To share the reason why you choose this program, and the target is as inportant as the result.

Et si le storytelling de l'ensemble de vos communication comprenait un passage sur les efforts fait sur les questions d'impact ? Comment faire percoler votre vision tant auprès de vos employés que de vos clients ? C'est en étant capable de faire passer un message clair sur les objectifs que vous vous donnez que vous pourrez communiquer vos démarches en impact. Contenus écrits sur vos projet dans vos bulletins, communications internes sur les bons coups, les projets complétés, les partenariats, témoignages de parties prenantes...Batissez un calendrier éditorial avec l'ensemble des communications que votre organisation prévoit toute l'année, partagez vos résultats, vos engagements. Ne pensez pas communication à deux vitesses mais intégrée !

L'examen et l'amélioration continue de votre impact sont essentiels pour garantir que votre calendrier d'impact social reste pertinent et efficace au fil du temps. Collectez des données sur les résultats de vos activités, recueillez les retours d'expérience des parties prenantes et analysez les tendances émergentes dans votre domaine. Utilisez ces informations pour ajuster vos stratégies et vos tactiques, et restez ouvert aux changements et aux innovations qui pourraient renforcer votre impact à long terme. Par exemple, en suivant les résultats des programmes d'alphabétisation, vous pourriez découvrir des modèles de réussite ou des lacunes à combler, ce qui vous permettrait d'ajuster vos approches pour maximiser votre efficacité.

When you started the process within your Goals there should be a statement of the value you create. These should look like KPIs on specific topics which you can then collect the data on and review on a regular cadence. Don't be too worried if your KPIs are not achieved, the aim is to reflect on both successes and failures and adapt and refine from there to make your KPIs more meaningful.

When something 'good' happens in government, it's amazing how many organisations take credit for that. And, hey, that makes sense! We are all fighting for the same funding and attention, so it makes sense people want to highlight their successes. But, how can we shift this, so organisations are competing less and integrating their work more effectively instead? I would love a future where impact isn't about organisations sitting in silos, but about multi-sector, multi-level campaigns working in tandem to have real, systems-level, lasting impact.

When creating a social impact calendar you want to be intentional with what you’re amplifying. Don’t overwhelm your own narrative but do foster a sense of community by supporting liked-mission causes.

Para crear un calendario de impacto social, comienza por definir claramente tu impacto. Identifica a tus grupos de interés, establece metas e hitos específicos. Planifica actividades y asigna recursos adecuados. Comunica tu impacto de manera efectiva y constantemente revisa y mejora tu estrategia.

Uma das coisas que aprendi com o tempo é sempre incluir as pessoas das comunidades com as quais trabalhamos em todas as fases. Muitas vezes n?o conseguimos enxergar pontos importantes e/ou datas relevantes para aquelas pessoas por n?o sermos do território ou n?o sermos do grupo social atingido. Usar a máxima "nada sobre nós, sem nós" é algo que realmente faz a diferen?a em qualquer trabalho de impacto social.