Accounting for Product Impact in the Consumer Finance Industry

George  Serafeim; Katie  Trinh

Working Paper | HBS Working Paper Series | 2020

Accounting for Product Impact in the Consumer Finance Industry

Abstract

We apply the product impact measurement framework of the Impact-Weighted Accounts Initiative (IWAI) in two competitor credit card providers within the consumer finance industry. We design a monetization methodology that allows us to calculate monetary impact estimates on cardholder access to credit, affordability for merchants, financial health, and recyclability, among other factors. Our results indicate substantial differences in the impact that competitors have through their products. These differences demonstrate how impact reflects corporate strategy and informs decision-making on industry-specific areas.

Keywords: Product Innovation; Product design; Impact; impact investing; impact measurement; ESG; ESG (environmental, social, governance) performance; ESG (environmental, social, governance) performance; ESG ratings; social corporate responsibility; corporate social responsibility; social impact; consumer finance; financial services; Credit Cards; Financial inclusion; Product; Product Design; Product Positioning; Society; Financial Services Industry;

Language: English

Format: Print

22 pages

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Citation:

Serafeim, George, and Katie Trinh. "Accounting for Product Impact in the Consumer Finance Industry." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 21-061, November 2020.

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Accounting for Product Impact in the Consumer Finance Industry

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