Pro bono collaborations should be measured by outcomes, not inputs

As more and more companies adopt skills‐based volunteer and pro bono programs as part of their corporate giving and community investment strategies, the challenge of measuring the impact of those efforts has gotten considerable attention within the sector. With no widely accepted standard to guide them, companies have taken to tracking some basic metrics—namely, the number of hours worked and the dollar value of the services provided. But such dry facts tend to lose the broader message—the degree to which their services help increase nonprofits' capacity to fulfill their missions, and the resulting increase in social impact.