In the latest in our Nicholls & Dimes column, social value expert Jeremy Nicholls explains why audit and assurance are the heroes we need on our quest if we are to understand what impact is and how to grow it.

We need ‘warrior accountants’ who must do more than help “standardise ESG”, warns Jeremy Nicholls. The risks of depending on declining environmental resources or below-standard working conditions must also be “managed and reported".

Do we really care about the ability of organisations to make money at the same time as value for others? We must close the gap between what businesses report on and what they are held legally accountable for, argues Jeremy Nicholls. 

“But how can it be neutral?” In the first of our new Nicholls & Dimes series, social value expert Jeremy Nicholls responds to the former Bank of England Governor – and asks how eminent economists can ignore the fundamental role of accounting.

Many think of financial accounting as a neutral, perhaps dull, technical exercise. But it’s a system based on deeply flawed assumptions, argues Jeremy Nicholls – and it’s driving inequality.

Are claims made in social impact measurement reports accurate? Someone should check, says Jeremy Nicholls. After all, investors receive independently audited financial reports. Why shouldn’t beneficiaries receive the same?

Is starting with a Theory of Change as vital a part of impact management as we think it is? Jeremy Nicholls of Social Value International urges us not to rest on our laurels.

Jeremy Nicholls argues that the world needs to change the way that it accounts for value. This is vital to reduce ever-increasing inequality, which – if it isn’t halted – will take us back to a feudal society.

"Could we have created more value with the resources we have available?" This is the question that board members need to be asking in order to truly embed an effective impact measurement approach in their organisations.