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The number of charitable foundations employing their investment portfolios to achieve a social benefit is on the rise, according to this report. Key Facts on Mission Investing finds that one in seven surveyed foundations are directing their assets to market-rate mission-related investments and/or below-market-rate program-related investments. By investing endowment dollars to further their charitable missions, these grantmakers —which hold 20 percent of all U.S. foundation assets— are extending the public benefit of their resources. The report also offers perspective from Stephen Viederman,...

An outcomes-based approach to evaluation works, proponents say, because it uses straightforward metrics to assess actual impact. How else to know if the work you're supporting is leading to the desired changes? Other grantmakers counter that outcomes measurement should be approached with care. Hasty assumptions or over-confidence in the idea that program impacts can be translated into hard data can skew not only the evaluation but the work itself. This guide looks at tensions that drive the debate about outcomes measurement, as well as common questions about its potential risks and rewards.