One of the questions I hear most often is: “How do we know if building an impact-focussed culture is actually working?” It’s a great question, and it matters more than most people think. The only real way to know, is to measure it.
See, having a clear purpose is important, but it’s not enough. If you want your business to make a real impact, you’ve got to build the kind of culture that brings that purpose to life every day. Otherwise, your purpose is just words on a wall.
But how do you measure something like culture? Isn’t it just… feelings and values?
Not if you go about it the right way. You can absolutely track your culture in a practical, grounded way that connects directly to your impact goals.
why culture and impact go together
Think of culture like the engine of your business. If it’s healthy, you move forward. If it’s not, you stall. Culture shows up in how your team works, how decisions are made, and how problems get solved. It shapes how you show up in the world.
So if you care about impact, you have to care about culture.
how to measure impact focussed culture change in a growing business
You don’t need fancy systems to start. You just need the right tools and a commitment to keep paying attention. Here’s a simple way to break it down:
1. choose a framework
Start by picking a framework that fits where you’re at:
- B Impact Assessment (BIA): Free, practical, covers key areas like governance, workers, and community. You don’t have to become a B Corp to use it, it’s just a helpful way to get a baseline.
- Purpose-Driven Scorecard: Measures how well your purpose shows up in daily operations, leadership, and planning.
- Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI): Quick, visual, and shows the gap between where your culture is now and where you want it to be. Helps you set direction.
- Or you can use my Impact-Focussed Self-Assessment Tool: this gives you a scorecard relatively quickly, which can help you identify gaps and what you need to focus on in order to improve.
Choose one, stick with it for at least a year, and review your scores every quarter, so you can track meaningful change.
2. measure three kinds of metrics
Not all numbers are equal. Here are the three buckets I recommend for most SMEs:
a) employee-focused metrics (internal behaviour)
- Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS): Would your team recommend working here?
- Purpose alignment surveys: Does the team get the purpose? Do they feel connected to it?
- Participation rates: Are employees making decisions based on the impact you hope to achieve?
- Leadership feedback: Are leaders actually modelling what you say you care about?
b) organisational culture metrics (how you work together)
- Adoption rates: Are new, impact-aligned practices actually catching on?
- Cross-team collaboration: Are teams working with each other on impact-focussed projects?
- Language tracking: How often is your purpose showing up in internal emails, meetings, project briefs?
c) impact-specific metrics (external results)
- Community engagement: Are you connected with your community, or are you just talking about it?
- Environmental footprint: Are you improving in areas that matter to your impact goals?
- Client feedback: Does the client feedback support the change / impact you seek to make for them?
3. use practical tools
You don’t need a giant budget to get this going.
- Pulse surveys: Short, regular surveys (Google Forms works fine to start).
- Simple dashboards: Build a spreadsheet that brings your key numbers into one place.
- Culture platforms (optional): If you’ve got a bit of budget, look at platforms like CultureAmp or Glint for deeper insight.
4. connect your data to action
Tracking culture isn’t about filling out reports, it’s about making your business better. Use what you learn to:
- Start conversations with your team.
- Adjust how you lead.
- Celebrate progress when things go well.
- Shift gears when something’s not working.
getting started: your next three steps
- Set a baseline — choose one framework and do an honest, whole-business assessment.
- Pick 5-7 key metrics — keep it simple, focused, and connected to your purpose.
- Build a rhythm — measure quarterly, review results, adjust. Repeat.
don’t overcomplicate this. just start.
You don’t need perfection. You need progress. The key is to begin, and to keep measuring, learning, and improving as you go. If you stay with it, this process will help you build a team that’s not just doing good work, but doing the right work — the kind of work that actually changes things.
want to dig deeper? here are some good resources:
- B Corporation (B Lab): bcorporation.net
- Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI): ocai-online.com
- AIHR (Digital HR resources): aihr.com/blog/
- Sopact (Social impact measurement): sopact.com
Let me know if you want help getting started, this is what I love doing with businesses like yours.