The Good Enough Guide

Impact measurement

In The Good Enough Guide, ‘impact measurement’ means measuring the changes taking place as the result of an emergency project. It is not always easy to do this during an emergency response. But, at its simplest, impact measurement means asking the people affected, ‘What difference are we making?’. Their view of the project and its impact is more important than anybody else’s. That is why accountability processes, which aim to make sure that those people have a say at key stages of the emergency response, are essential.

Accountability

‘Accountability’ is all about how an organisation balances the needs of different groups in its decisionmaking and activities. Most NGOs have processes in place that will meet the accountability requirements of more powerful groups such as project donors or host governments. In The Good Enough Guide, however, accountability means making sure that the women, men, and children affected by an emergency are involved in planning, implementing, and judging our response to their emergency too. This helps ensure that a project will have the impact they want to see.

A beneficiary

The terms ‘people affected by emergencies’ and ‘beneficiaries’ as used in The Good Enough Guide include all members of these groups regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, HIV and AIDS status, religion, sexual orientation, or social standing unless otherwise stated.

Good enough

In this Guide, being ‘good enough’ means choosing a simple solution rather than an elaborate one. ‘Good enough’ does not mean second best: it means acknowledging that, in an emergency response, adopting a quick and simple approach to impact measurement and accountability may be the only practical possibility. When the situation changes, you should aim to review your chosen solution and amend your approach accordingly.

Next Page >