Berkshire United Way

Working with partners to determine whether the community is making measurable progress towards end-goals.

Summary of Client Results:

• BUW can more easily see the link between program performance and community outcomes. 
• BUW staff have more time to focus on the bigger picture now that many time-intensive tasks are automated and completed remotely by partners.
• BUW engages in more effective data-based decision-making, funding, and communication.
• BUW has a more accurate understanding of areas of need and demographics within their community.
• BUW has a method to measure long-term progress towards community wellbeing and engage in Results-Based Accountability.

Pittsfield is the largest city and seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts. Like many New England manufacturing centers, it experienced a significant economic decline in the latter part of the 20th century. However, with environmental initiatives, industrial property reconstruction, and growth in arts and entertainment, the city has redefined itself as a cultural and economic powerhouse.

Pittsfield is also home to Berkshire United Way (BUW), which has revealed a different side of the city and county. Based on data collection funded by BUW in 2014, 7,846 low-income families were living at 200 percent of poverty in Berkshire County (24% of the county’s population). By comparison, the state average is 19.7%.

BUW is working to turn the curve in the right direction on these indicators with community partners’ support. Currently, BUW funds around 42 programs across 28 local organizations to improve literacy, provide good job opportunities, and eliminate poverty through educational pathways. To ensure the community is making long-term progress, BUW uses data to identify issues and measure results and outcomes. By measuring results, they ensure programs are useful and worthy of investment.

United Way of Brazoria County

Using a shared framework and tools to enhance communication and create outcomes.

Summary of Client Results:

• The work of funded partners is now tied to strategies that align with results and indicators.
• Increased consistency in how they articulate performance measurement.
• Enhanced communication throughout measurement and reporting processes.
• Established a system for communicating outcomes for the GRF.

Like many other United Ways around the country, UWBC had provided donor dollars to well-intentioned funded partners for decades without a way to communicate the return on investment. What had changed? How were people better off as a result of the hard work of public sector partners? These were the most important questions, but there was no universal system to get this information from grantees.

Funded partners submitted reports with different data in different formats. What was included in the reports was often anecdotal – important stories of change, yes, but it was difficult to see the bigger picture in terms of clients’ progress. Collating these reports into something meaningful was time-intensive and painstaking. UWBC staff had to make hand calculations across multiple organizations or transpose data from partner reports into spreadsheets.

What needed to change was clear. First, UWBC needed a simple framework that could be deployed across the network to get everyone on the same page, working towards the same goals, and reporting on shared measures. Second, they needed a data-collection tool that each grantee could use to report data locally and then roll that data up into community-wide indicators.

The steps to make these changes happen were also clear. First, Clear Impact would help UWBC develop a Results-Based Accountability (RBA) framework. Second, train every funded partner on performance accountability and help them to develop performance measures related to the UWBC RBA framework. Third, build a set of Scorecards and transition UWBC and its funded partners to use the Clear Impact Scorecard for data reporting.

United Way of Waco-McLennan County

Giving a voice to the story of impact.

Summary of Client Results:

• UWWMC can more easily answer the questions: How much work are partners doing? How are residents better off as a result of that work? Are there different gains in education, financial security, health, or safety net services? What do the individual contributions of partners mean at an aggregate level?
• UWWMC now has an automated system that communicates the impact of funded partners in education, financial literacy, health, and safety net services. Partner data instantly updated and aggregated numbers are immediately visible in Impact Framework Scorecards.
• UWWMC has made great strides towards tracking, understanding, and communicating the aligned contributions of funded partners towards making a difference on community-level goals and objectives

Despite the growing positivity, Waco, Texas has its share of entrenched challenges. The median household income in 2018 was $37,735, far below the Texas median of $60,629. Waco’s poverty rate is 26.8%, representing more than twice the national average. A look at the data, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, tells an even starker story; 24% of African-Americans and 21% of Latinos live in poverty compared to 12% of Anglos. This contrasts with the general demographics of the area. 46% of the people living in Waco are Anglo, 24% are Latino, and 23% are African-American. The community-at-large has recently begun to address inequity through racial equity training and collective impact.

To address these challenges, United Way of Waco-McLennan County invests in trusted partners in the areas of education, health, financial stability, and safety net services. Many partners are longstanding pillars in the community; Caritas of Waco, for example, has worked to offset poverty and hunger for more than 53 years. Regardless of how long they have served the people of Waco-McLennan County, all partners supported by United Way share a defining characteristic – to work hand in hand with residents and help them to build better tomorrows.

Clear Impact was approached by United Way of Waco-McLennan County about the Clear Impact Scorecard in 2018. They saw it being used by the local collective impact initiative, Prosper Waco, and were interested in its capabilities. More than anything, United Way of Waco-McLennan County needed a way to clearly give voice to its story. How much work had partners done? How were residents better off as a result of that work? Were there different gains in education, financial security, health, or safety net services? What did the individual contributions of partners mean at an aggregate level?