Rethinking Social Impact Measurement in the Social Economy sector

he Social Economy sector represents over 10% of all enterprises in the European Union and provides employment for approximately 13.6 million people. Beyond its economic contribution, the sector plays a critical role in promoting social inclusion, democratic governance and sustainable development. However, despite this importance, Social Economy Organisations face persistent structural challenges.

Existing social impact assessment frameworks are often designed primarily for accountability and external reporting. As a result, they frequently overlook local specificities, impose heavy administrative burdens, and focus almost exclusively on service beneficiaries, while neglecting the impact on employees, working conditions and organisational practices.

At the same time, transnational evidence indicates that workers in the social economy often experience lower wages, precarious employment and informal working conditions, highlighting the urgent need to expand social impact assessment beyond beneficiary outcomes alone.

For this reason, the ASSETS project seeks to rethink how social impact in the social economy is understood and measured.

This workshop will present the ASSETS project’s innovative approach to social impact assessment in the social economy, combining improved evaluation frameworks with digital tools such as a mobile app and AI-based chatbot. We will explore how impact measurement can become more participatory, locally grounded, and capable of capturing working conditions and organisational change over time. Participants will discuss current challenges in impact assessment and provide feedback to help shape more inclusive and practical methodologies.