|
Working Paper HBS Working Paper Series 2020 A Preliminary Framework for Product Impact-Weighted Accounts |
While there has been significant progress in the measurement of an organization’s environmental and social performance, metrics to evaluate the impact of products once they come to market lag far behind. In this paper we provide a framework for systematic measurement of product impact in monetary terms and delve into the rationale for the framework’s seven elements. We then apply the whole framework to two competitor companies and elements of the framework across companies in different sectors of the economy to show the feasibility of measuring product impact and the actionability of the framework. Not only does this application demonstrate feasibility, it also indicates the value of impact-weighted financial statement analysis. We see our results as a first step, rather than a definitive answer, towards more systematic measurement of product impact in monetary terms that can then be reflected in financial statements with the purpose of creating impact-weighted financial accounts.
Keywords: social impact; product life cycle; environment; sustainability; measurement; metrics; impact investing; ESG; ESG (environmental, social, governance) performance; ESG reporting; Product; Environmental Sustainability; Measurement and Metrics; Framework; Financial Statements;
Serafeim, George, Katie Trinh, and T. Robert Zochowski. "A Preliminary Framework for Product Impact-Weighted Accounts." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-076, January 2020. (Revised February 2020.)
