Auditing and Self Verification
Lisa McMullan provided an introduction to audit and self-verification function and the potential role it can play in authenticating your social impact story. Lisa explored how the audit works, why you might choose to subject your social accounts to audit and how it can raise awareness amongst your target audience. If you are uncertain about why an audit is necessary, this session provided some examples of how it can really make a difference to your investors and other stakeholders.
An introduction to the Social Accounting Journey
Karen Smith and Matthew Lanham led a workshop which included an overview of the social accounting process, some pointers on how, where and why to begin, and some top tips from Matthew Lanham of the NeuroMuscular Centre, who will share his experience of undertaking social accounting within his organisation. This was a great workshop for those new to social accounting, or who are just starting out on their journey.
For video link – https://youtu.be/uF6NSXFxA6w and https://youtu.be/hmCex0ZRjEg
Stakeholder Engagement
Lynn Sbaih looked at how to engage with stakeholders in order to better understand organisational performance and impact. This workshop covered stakeholder mapping as well as exploring different ways to engage and consult with stakeholders. It was aimed at those wanting to make sure they are getting the most out of the relationships they have with those affected by their work.
For video link – https://youtu.be/KtaPz_AVlac
Turning Data into Intelligence
Anne Lythgoe explored how the information and data that is collected by your organisation could be used to manage the ‘social’ in a social enterprise and enable you to Prove the value of your work, Improve performance and be Accountable to your stakeholders. Workshop participants heard about the different types of data which exist, use some of the tools from the SAN Guide to social accounting, and mapped out how data can be turned into intelligence for a case study organisation.
Sue Osborne, a SAN Social Auditor and Chief Officer at the School for Social Entrepreneurs in Yorkshire and Humber summarised the day. For highlights of the event have a look at https://youtu.be/5kC73IFnIeQ
Social Audit Network SAN 