Impact
It’s in our DNA. It guides our ideation, our investments, and underpins our insights. It’s led us to re-invent the rules of return.
An impact strategy two decades in the making
Our impact-first approach has informed our strategy from the beginning. In the last two decades, we have learned how to bring together the right capital, community, and knowledge at the right time.
Data that connects the dots
Every metric tells a story. Our impact framework helps us collect and convert meaningful data into action. We measure impact across customer, company, and ecosystem.
Customers are the experts on the impact a new product or service has on their lives. We listen deeply to track metrics like first-time access to critical goods and service and improvements in quality of life, income, and climate resilience.
Our portfolio companies are driven to create meaningful social impact and sustainable financial returns. We measure how many people our companies reach and how gender inclusion and climate resilience influence their business models.
An ecosystem of collaboration is needed to understand and build markets that serve the poor. We aim to advance systemic impact beyond individual investments by collaborating with companies, value chain stakeholders, governments, and capital providers.
Measuring what matters
Impact measurement across our portfolio and regions has three pillars: poverty focus, breadth, and depth. These metrics help drive our investment decisions and build inclusive markets delivering products and services to the poor.
Poverty focus
We measure poverty focus as the percentage of customers living under the globally standardized World Bank poverty lines per country.
Breadth of impact
We measure breadth of impact as the number of lives impacted, the number of jobs created, improved, or sustained, and how many metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions were avoided.
Depth of impact
We measure depth of impact by how much change an individual experiences and what impact means to them, beyond counting lives and ensuring poverty focus. Some sample metrics we measure here include quality of life, first time access and, and how likely a person is to recommend a product or service to others (Net Promoter score).
The depth of our impact through deep dive surveys with our companies
Explore case studies
The impact of innovative business models shines in these examples of entrepreneurs building a more inclusive world.
Gigante Central Wet-Mill
A blueprint for community-based investing
S4S Technologies
Leveraging technology and innovation for economic and gender empowerment
Lizard Earth
Connecting cocoa farmers to premium markets
Redefining impact data collection
In 2019 Acumen spun off an impact measurement company, 60 Decibels, based on our unique lean data approach. Lean Data is now widely used by impact investors to hear and learn directly from customers.
More about Acumen
What we do
We combine the best qualities of philanthropy and business to break the cycle of poverty.
Problems we solve
We focus on solving problems across the five strategic sectors of energy, agriculture, workforce, health, and education.
Where we work
We work in some of the hardest to reach communities on the planet, from Africa to India, Latin America to the United States.