Social impact bonds: a letter from the frontline – audio

After seven years ‘in the trenches’ as part of Australia’s foray into social impact bonds, Elyse Sainty shares her insights around SIB myths and legends. (Part 1).

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Summary
  • The discipline imposed by an outcomes-based contract can be a powerful catalyst to use data for good, and transparency helps us learn from our collective successes and failures.
  • The development of SIBs can be lengthy and expensive, but things can be significantly simplified if governments ‘front end’ the analysis of baseline outcomes and the selection of metrics. There is a danger that overly complex governance and evaluation will stymie the evolution of SIBs and outcomes-based contracting.
  • It is important that a SIB is seen as a means to an end, with a clear view of ‘what happens next’ at the conclusion of the project.
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