Through our work with governments, we think critically about how social services are contracted. Data availability is often a limiting factor in the project design or in the evaluation of a project’s success. Many of our projects benefit from timely access to data in order to evaluate the unmet need, identify characteristics of the intended beneficiary population, and define outcomes. Additionally, lack of data availability results in high transaction costs for one-off data use agreements, and decreased data value due to lag times. Third Sector’s work is often dependent on …

In late June, the Department of Commerce created an opportunity to share input on the Federal Data Strategy by requesting comments on the Cross-Agency Priority goal of Leveraging Data as a Strategic Asset. The Department of Commerce specifically requested comments on best practices related to the four pillars of the federal data strategy: Enterprise Data Governance Access, Use, and Augmentation Decision-Making and Accountability Commercialization, Innovation, and Public Use. Given that data is a critical component of Third Sector’s work in outcomes-oriented contracting, we were happy to share perspective from our …

In late June, the Department of Commerce created an opportunity to share input on the Federal Data Strategy by requesting comments on the Cross-Agency Priority goal of Leveraging Data as a Strategic Asset. The Department of Commerce specifically requested comments on best practices related to the four pillars of the federal data strategy: Enterprise Data Governance Access, Use, and Augmentation Decision-Making and Accountability Commercialization, Innovation, and Public Use. Given that data is a critical component of Third Sector’s work in outcomes-oriented contracting, we were happy to share perspective from our …

At Third Sector, we work where “money meets the people.” We build data-informed feedback loops to tie government funding to the achievement of measurable social outcomes. Any program that can incentivize the achievement of real progress on social issues gets us excited, and the recent Opportunity Zone legislation has just that promise. Opportunity Zones are a community development program authorized by the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (2017), with the goal of encouraging patient capital to invest in long-term community development projects. The federal legislation allows newly authorized Opportunity …

As a senior in high school, I selected Northeastern University for their emphasis on experiential learning, not knowing then how I would fare in a 9-5 position or taking a six-month hiatus from classes. At Northeastern, co-op is considered part of the curriculum, with courses covering everything you’re expected to know – from how to conduct yourself in an interview to what to wear on the job. In my first week however, I realized that no amount of studying would have prepared me for the transition to a full-time role. …

Long before Third Sector formally committed to exploring diversity, equity, and inclusion through a critical examination of our culture, norms, and client-facing approaches, we recognized the importance of building a diverse team. We know that diverse teams perform better, and we also value the unique perspectives that surface from a group of individuals with varying lived experiences. As is still typical recruitment practice, our hiring process originally required the submission of a resume at the onset of the application process. However, in an effort to build a more diverse team, …

At Third Sector, our five core values of Rigor, Respect, Resourcefulness, Results, and Reflection drive how we conduct ourselves with clients, partners, and each other. As part of our values, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have always been central to our work. What is more, we simply could not successfully direct public resources in more data-driven ways to improve people’s lives without empowering a diverse representation of community members, pushing for more inclusive programming, and considering which outcomes are most equitable. In our ongoing reflection though, we realized that the …

What would it take to redesign programs with whole families at the center?” The Future Services Institute, an initiative of the Public and Nonprofit Leadership Center at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, posed this question at the onset of the recent Redesign for Whole Families Summit.  Throughout the two-day conference, government agencies, nonprofit providers, researchers, and thought leaders sought to tackle this question, by sharing best practices and stories from the field, brainstorming how to apply research to local contexts, and problem-solving challenges posed by the …

The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) recently released an Outcomes-Oriented ESE Toolkit to support counties statewide in strengthening their Expanded Subsidized Employment (ESE) programs. Third Sector was engaged by CDSS and the California Welfare Directors Association (CWDA), to provide technical assistance and help advance an approach that focuses on outcomes and continuous improvement in the ESE program. The resulting toolkit guides counties in moving programming, contracting, and data practices towards an outcomes orientation. As part of their California Work Opportunities and Responsibilities to Kids (CalWORKs) block grant, 52 counties …

This course will provide an introduction to social and environmental impact analysis – that is, how to understand through reporting about it that has been produced by others.

As discussed in our first blog, the Pay for Success (PFS) field is evolving from initial Social Impact Bond-style projects launched by governments and supported by third-party (i.e., non-government) funding to agency and multi-agency engagements that shift the practice of how existing public funding streams are deployed for specific social programs. Across these projects, traditional cost-reimbursement service contracts are being amended or replaced to align funding, policy, data, and services together to the ultimate goal of achieving outcomes for our nation’s most vulnerable populations. Funding is needed to scale the …

Are you interested in developing systems to improve data-driven decision-making? Do you want to learn more about contracting for positive outcomes? Have you thought about writing outcomes into contracts, but don’t know where to start? Third Sector now offers a workshop-style six-week engagement for state, county, and local government agencies who want to learn about outcomes-oriented contracting and seek to identify initial actions they can take to incorporate outcomes metrics, enhanced incentive structures, and data-driven feedback loops into their social service contracting processes. Governments can use the workshops as a …

When job-seekers gain credentials and degrees, find employment or boost their earnings, use less public benefits, or escape the recidivism cycle, the mission of a local workforce board is being achieved.  For years, these outcomes have been aimed at, but not actually incentivized. Enter the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), which gives workforce boards around the nation the opportunity to set aside funds that don’t expire during the traditional two-year funding cycle and can be tied to the achievement of outcomes that measurably improve people’s lives.  Before tapping into …

This post originally appeared on the America Forward blog and is co-authored by Nicole Truhe, Government Affairs Director, America Forward. Third Sector Capital Partners is a proud member of the America Forward coalition. Every day social innovators and social innovation organizations across the country are measurably impacting communities and individuals. This Practice to Policy blog series lifts up the voices of the more than 70 organizations that make up the America Forward Coalition and our broader social innovation network by highlighting their outcomes-based solutions to our country’s most pressing social problems and …

In October 2017, the Children’s Services Council of Broward County, Florida (CSC Broward) was selected to participate in Empowering Families, Third Sector’s national cohort of communities working to improve outcomes for children and families. This cohort is supported by a 2016 Social Innovation Fund (SIF) grant*. Through this cohort, Third Sector, along with Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy (AISP), will provide sites with two years of technical assistance (TA) to develop both Integrated Data Systems (IDS) and an outcomes-oriented contracting approach. At Third Sector, we primarily work with state and …

The data in front of us was sobering: 45% of adults, who received economic assistance under the Massachusetts Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children (TAFDC) program in January 2018, had grown up in families that also depended on TAFDC. “We have to do something different to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty,” Commissioner Jeff McCue of the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) implored. As a member of the Empowering Families learning community, DTA, in collaboration with the Executive Office of Education, the Executive Office of Technology Services and …

In late January, in the mountains of the Wasatch Valley, over 600 city, state, and local government leaders, social impact investors, service providers, academics, and thought leaders came together at the University of Utah to discuss solutions to some of the most intractable challenges facing the social service sector in the United States and internationally. This unique event is the annual Winter Innovation Summit, hosted by the Sorenson Impact Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, which offers a diverse array of panels and workshops featuring leaders who are moving the needle …

The ability of disadvantaged students to navigate a path to and through college has never been more critical in an era with a broad wage gap based on post-secondary educational attainment. While Pay for Success (PFS) has been deployed effectively in a variety of social policy domains, the movement has largely bypassed the field of higher education. This comes despite the fact that the achievement of longer-term metrics such as a persistence, graduation, and labor market outcomes, rather than student enrollment or other interim measures, are now driving the conversation …

In the recent discussion concerning evidence-based practices, many practitioners believe that the current approach to collecting evidence, validating findings, and replicating evidence-based programs (EBPs) has distorted the funding system for social services. Others argue that relaxing the focus on evidence-based practices will welcome a world where once again anecdotes and heuristics guide funding decisions. At Third Sector, we believe there is another way forward: continuous impact measurement using administrative data. If government made low-cost impact management an element of their program oversight, it could better hold providers accountable for quantifiable …

The social services sector is transitioning from a focus on ‘outputs’ measuring activity levels towards ‘outcomes’ measuring life impacts. Third Sector advises public agencies seeking to use the tools at their disposal, such as procurement, policy, and data, to better align with long-term success for their communities. While we want success to be defined in terms of outcomes and encourage this evolution of the field, we still see value in assessing outputs for several reasons. 1. Process outputs provide motivation to achieve broader goals Setting and achieving intermittent process metrics …