We are willing to take risks to address the issues that are important to us, and we recognize that the steps we take—or that our grantees take—may not always be the right ones. That’s why, once we’ve made a grant, we expect the grantee to measure progress and report on the results. When appropriate, we also commission measurement and evaluations across groups of similar grants.
Three principles guide our approach:
- Measurement should inform specific decisions and/or actions.
- We do not measure everything, but we do strive to measure what matters most.
- The data we gather help us learn and adapt our initiatives and strategies.
Annual Progress Assessments of Grants
When they apply for foundation funding, we ask organizations to complete frameworks that explain the sets of activities they propose to conduct and the outputs and outcomes they expect to see as a result. After grants are awarded, we require our grantees to carefully track and report on their work in the field each year. Our program officers carefully monitor each grant.
Measuring Progress Towards Toward Impact
We aspire to measure the intermediate outcomes and ultimate impact of our work. In many, but not all, cases, we may look beyond our grantees and draw on data gathered from other sources. We take the following types of steps:
- We commission third-party evaluations that provide in-depth findings on the effectiveness of the work. In some cases, we evaluate specific grants; in other cases, we may review entire strategies, initiatives, or portfolios of similar work.
- We turn to outside advisors and experts to help us examine our efforts and give us honest counsel.
- We reach out to the people we intend to serve—our ultimate beneficiaries—to make sure that our investments are meeting their needs.
For more information on how we strive to measure and learn from the results of our partners and grantees, see
A Guide to Actionable Measurement, which offers an explanation of our general guidelines and principles.
Strategy Reviews
Internally, we assess our grantmaking teams’ progress against strategic goals through our annual strategy review and budget planning processes. In strategy review meetings, teams have the opportunity to share with Bill, Melinda, and CEO Jeff Raikes what has gone well that year, what the challenges have been, and what the lessons and adjustments will be. Teams bring critical issues to leaders’ attention and request feedback. This is also a great opportunity for the CEO and co-chairs to learn, ask questions, and be engaged in the work.