How Can We Help?

• What are our goals and objectives and are they measurable?
• What information do we need to measure progress, and what are the resources required to do so?
• What are the right methods for our data collection needs?
• What types of data driven decisions can we make within our timeline and budget?
• How often do we need to update our information?
• Who will be responsible for reviewing the data, interpreting insights, and taking action? What support might they need to do so?
• Do we have the required in-house expertise, or do we need external support to determine data needs, collection, analysis, interpretation and application?
• We already have data. Is it the right data to inform our goals and objectives? Is it accurate, relevant and reliable?
• How can we ensure that our investment in data is worth it?

Collecting the right data enables more effective service delivery on many different levels. Relevant data can help your organization:

• verify that you are aligned and on track to meet your programmatic goals
• provide deep insights into program and client needs
• guide potential improvements to service delivery, and
• ensure accountability to all interested parties.

The right data allow implementers to focus on where the greatest impact can be made, while optimizing overall efforts and outcomes in public health and development. Collecting and communicating data that measures the outcomes of your organization’s mission is also key to attracting and retaining funding. In short, data-driven reporting tangibly increases transparency, effectiveness, and better use of resources across the life cycle of programs and projects.

Case study: Using data to drive impact in Cambodia

Helen Keller International’s (HKI) use of the EquityTool in their Homestead Food Production program in Cambodia demonstrates the critical importance of data collection to maximize targeted impact. With the EquityTool, HKI surveyed 4,500 households across four provinces in two weeks, gaining valuable insights into the wealth of their program beneficiaries. Their efforts revealed that their current model often served more clients in higher wealth quintiles than intended.

This data-driven approach prompted HKI to ask critical questions about program participation, thinking carefully about how to adjust the program model to better serve their target populations while also achieving long-term sustainability. The EquityTool revolutionized the way HKI collects and understands wealth data, enabling them to quickly and accurately assess whether they are supporting program beneficiaries with the most need.

HKI’s experience highlights the transformative power of data collection in driving programmatic improvements and ensuring that interventions reach the most vulnerable populations. By using fit-for-purpose data, organizations can refine their programs, maximize their impact, and work towards a world where everyone has access to the resources and opportunities they need to thrive.

To make evidence-based decisions, align your organization around the key information vital to the programmatic and operational needs. Then, identify, collect and use “fit for purpose” data—to ensure your decisions are well-rounded and impactful. There are many ways to collect the data you need, such as reexamining the data you already have, analyzing data others have collected, combining multiple data sources, or collecting and analyzing new data. M4M has over a decade of experience supporting organizations with these processes and ensuring alignment of data and purpose.

Although it’s tempting to collect everything you could, we recommend focusing on data that helps you answer three critical questions:

1. How are your programs performing?
2. What is the impact of your services?
3. How can you use resources most effectively?

With these questions guiding you, consider the necessity of new data versus using existing data. Think about investing in a data collection and analysis system. Utilize user-friendly tools to enable more team members to participate effectively in data monitoring and evaluation. Be mindful of the risks and missed opportunities if data collection and analysis are overlooked, and implement strategies to enhance data usability while preventing information overload.

Prioritizing data can mean some difficult choices about what not to collect, or tough trade-offs about accuracy versus timeliness. With over a decade of experience, M4M has helped numerous global health organizations and leaders make these difficult decisions to get the right data needed to strengthen service provision.

Case study: Fast and simple data collection supports quality contraception services in Mexico

The Mexican Foundation for Family Planning, A.C. (Mexfam), is a civil society organization promoting access to health, education, and defense of sexual and reproductive rights for all people. Mexfam needed a simpler, more efficient process to collect better data from clients across their clinics, services, and activities nationwide, as well as methods to analyze the newly gathered data more effectively. They also needed the system to be practical and cost-effective, and to go beyond client satisfaction to demonstrate contributions toward modern contraceptive uptake and continuation.

M4M collaborated with Mexfam to implement a digital, self-report version of the Method Information Index (MII), a simple measure to assess the quality of family planning counselling, widely adopted by the global public health community. M4M undertook a proof-of-concept study to test the feasibility and utility of MII self report. Responses to the MII questions and other client-reports on service quality were collected at standalone kiosks at two clinics in Mexico City. Weekly reports were produced, and a second phase of the study added questions to test whether longer surveys would be feasible. Rapid data analysis and weekly reporting enabled Mexfam to make necessary changes to quickly improve service quality. In one case, evidence from the survey resulted in a management decision to change personnel at one of the participating clinics. In other instances, the survey data demonstrated areas in which counsellors or doctors could benefit from additional supportive training.

Start by thinking about who will use the data and how. A presentation to a senior research director may be different than to members of your community outreach team. By determining who will use the data and why, you can tailor your data presentation in meaningful formats like reports, graphs, and interactive visualizations. Where possible, it is also helpful to compare performance against relevant benchmarks, including previous projects, peer organizations, or global standards. This structured approach prevents feeling overwhelmed by data and ensures decisions enhance organizational effectiveness and impact.

Case study: Visualizing data to understand private sector engagement in Nepal

 M4M supported Frontier Health Markets (FHM Engage) in Nepal to explore how data can be used to better engage the private sector in family planning provision. Through a combination of advanced statistical methods, and a user-centered approach, M4M created maps showing where there might be greater market potential, as well as estimates of how large the value of that potential might be. The data revealed a potential to increase contraceptive sales by a third by reaching new users of modern family planning. This information was then combined into an easy-to-use, interactive data visualization that allows a wide range of interested parties to explore the data dynamically and to consider opportunities to increase modern contraceptive use in Nepal.

Using your data goes far beyond basic analysis. For example, you can use it to make informed staffing decisions, monitor trends for strategic planning, and communicate your impact effectively to the public. Data is also critical for storytelling, allowing you to create compelling visualizations and actionable insights. Using data to create dynamic dashboards or conduct specific analyses provide ongoing insights that enable you to make data-driven decisions swiftly and effectively.

Case study: Measuring the reach of programs and advocacy

By 2030, ChildFund International aims to reach 100 million children, youth and family members annually and help children grow up healthy, educated, skilled, and safe. To do this, they needed to understand not only the reach of their programs, but also the reach of their public policy advocacy work.

M4M has worked with ChildFund to develop an Advocacy Reach Calculator to estimate the potential number of children, youth and family members who can benefit from ChildFund’s policy and budget advocacy efforts annually. The calculator is designed for use by ChildFund country offices and headquarters to consistently track progress against their strategic plan and to make advocacy decisions based on their model. The Calculator contributes to ChildFund’s efforts to provide data-driven insight into how the combination of their programs, communications, and advocacy lead to positive changes for children and youth.

Packaging tailored and relevant data will help you tell your story and demonstrate impact. Funders appreciate a commitment to regular measurement of impact and, whenever possible, transparently sharing the results. By monitoring consistent metrics that show progress over time, you can form a narrative that substantiates the effectiveness of your work and reinforces the trust and support of your partners and funders, leading to more successful funding requests.

We know that impact investors need to present a compelling, data-driven case for investment that tells a story and demonstrates financial and social returns. As an investor or an entrepreneur, the right data are crucial to measure the social impact of your investments. This frequently involves aligning the data collection and measurement plans of socially conscious enterprises with globally accepted standards for impact measurement and management. M4M can help you design cost-effective measurement strategies that assess the health outputs and outcomes of investments and can provide tangible evidence of their positive impact.

Case Study: Cameroon Cataract Social Impact Bond Technical Assistance

The Cameroon Cataract Social Impact Bond (SIB) is one of the first SIBs to successfully launch. Using a business model similar to the Avarind Eye Care system, it used cross-subsidization to provide free or discounted surgeries to the poorest patients. The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the Netri Foundation provided a combined $2 million to support the Magrabi ICO Cameroon Eye Institute (MICEI), which was established by the Africa Eye Foundation. The funds were repaid by The Hilton Foundation, Fred Hollows Foundation, and Sightsavers based on performance outcomes, including providing care to the poorest patients.  MICEI received a performance bonus periodically if 40% of cataract surgery patients were in the lowest two wealth quintiles, assessed using M4M’s EquityTool.  M4M worked with the independent evaluators to optimize data collection, support interpretation of results, and assist the team in ensuring that MICEI and its guarantors understood its equity target.

Tracking progress and demonstrating impact is key for both you and your grantees. To better support your grantees, it is important to define clear metrics that outline the required data for consistent and streamlined collection. Providing helpful tools and resources such as the EquityTool and ACQTool can help grantees gather relevant data efficiently. Collaborating on reporting strategies allows you to develop measurement approaches that meet both the grantees’ needs and your organization’s objectives. Offering capacity-building support, including training, technical assistance, and funding, can also enhance the grantees’ data capabilities.

There are several ways that funders can enhance their impact by leveraging grantee data. It is important to ensure that you are set up to combine grantee data into consistent, unified metrics across your portfolio to ensure data (and grantee efforts) are understandable and meaningful. Regular analysis of these data then allows funders to identify trends and make informed funding decisions. Encouraging the use of validated tools, such as the MII, also helps ensure actionable data collection.

Simplified measurement strategies allow grantees to gauge how well they are doing in meeting their mission and serving their target population, while also aligning with funder reporting requirements. As a funder, you can support your grantees though the data-driven decision-making process by focusing data requests on the intersection of grantee information needs and funder information needs. This reduces grantee reporting burden, while helping them focus on the information they most need in order to most effectively and efficiently use donor funds.