SP Standards
Universal Standards for Social Performance Management
Overview
The SPTF Universal Standards for Social Performance Management (“the Standards”) are a set of management standards for microfinance institutions (MFIs) with a double or triple bottom line. Developed through broad industry consultation, the Standards establish clear requirements for the policies, procedures, and operations that an MFI should have in place in order to achieve its social goals. The Standards are called “universal” because they include only the fundamental, not aspirational, requirements for MFIs that want to manage their social performance.
The Standards are organized into the following six categories:
- Define and Monitor Target Clients and Social Goals
- Ensure Board, Management, and Employee Commitment to Social Performance
- Protect Clients’ Rights
- Design products, services, delivery models and channels that respond to Clients’ Needs and Preferences
- Treat Employees Responsibly
- Balance Social and Financial Returns
The original purpose of microfinance was to improve client welfare, but for the last two decades, many MFIs have prioritized the financial sustainability of their organization over the sustainability of the clients they serve. These Standards are an important step to refocus MFIs on the client.
The Universal Standards for Social Performance Management for MFIs are available for download in four different languages:
For further information, please look through the PowerPoint presentation below, which introduces the Universal Standards, and/or listen to a recording of SPTF's online webinar on the same topic [available after 6 Jan 2012].
How are the standards being developed?
The SPTF Secretariat is developing Universal Standards for Social Performance Management in response to broad demand by Task Force members for the SPTF to take on this role. The process involves drafting standards, benchmarks, and guidelines based on existing data and industry experience, broadly and pro-actively pursuing feedback and suggestions for revisions from the more than 1,000 members of the Task Force, as well as experts outside of the Task Force who work in related fields, and several rounds of revisions before final ratification.
SPTF began drafting the Standards for MFIs in 2010/11 using the following primary data inputs:
- Data from the SPTF/MIX Social Performance Report. Work to collect social performance data through this channel began in 2005, and over the past several years hundreds of MFIs have reported social performance data to MIX. These data help ground the draft Standards in the current state of practice.
- Indicators and data from complementary social performance initiatives, including the Smart Campaign, MFTransparency, CERISE, and Imp-Act Consortium.
- Input from the SPTF Steering Committee (ongoing).
- Input from SPTF members (preliminary comment period May-June 2011, official comment period July - October 2011): microfinance institutions, investors, donors, NGOs, networks, and associations.
- Input from experts outside of the SPTF (official comment period July - October 2011).
You have been heard!
To read the complete set of comments on the proposed Standards that SPTF received in the spring 2011 public comment period, click here. To read a summary of the main themes that emerged from feedback, and quotes from members' comments, click here.
Working groups composed of SPTF members made further revisions to the Standards in fall 2011. Notes from all of their meetings are available on this website, under the "Working Groups" page (in the "SP Task Force" menu).
Release date for the revised Standards: January 2012.
How should the Standards be used? To whom do the Standards apply?
MFIs should use the Standards in several key ways:
- To guide their strategies for achieving stronger social performance management.
- To self-regulate their social performance.
The Standards are also relevant to the work of other stakeholders in the microfinance industry:
- Investors and donors can use the Standards to understand an MFI’s SPM practices relative to generally accepted good practices. This may help investors and donors to direct their funds toward MFIs with strong SPM, and to identify SPM capacity building needs among investees.
- Social raters and social auditors already use many of the individual standards in their assessments, but they may begin to assess compliance with the entire set of standards as part of the rating and auditing processes.
- Networks and associations can use the Standards as a tool to assess the social performance of partner MFIs and make critical decisions about capacity building, partnership agreements, and funding.
For all stakeholders, the Standards establish a global, shared understanding of social performance management—a first for the microfinance industry.
Is compliance mandatory?
No. Compliance with the Standards is not mandatory and the document itself offers no grading or certification system.
What are the expectations for SPTF members?
The members of the SPTF are interested in, and committed to, social performance. The SPTF asks that its members:
- All stakeholders:
- First, adopt the Declaration of Principles
- Contribute to the development of both the Standards and the corresponding diagnostic indicators and benchmarks, by providing feedback to the SPTF
- Promote the use of, and/or adhere to, the Standards, according to your type of organization.
Additional Resources
The resources below provide additional information on social performance standards:
Social Performance Indicators
Since 2005, the global, industry-wide Social Performance Task Force (SPTF) has focused on developing ways to measure social performance in microfinance. One of the achievements of this initiative has been the creation of social performance indicators to assess how an MFI aligns its systems to its mission and how it uses social performance information to reach its social goals.
MIX started to collect information on social performance in 2008 with a pilot set of 22 social performance indicator categories. Over 400 MFIs reported on these indicators in 2009 and 2010. Recently, the Social Performance Indicators Working Group of the SPTF has refined the indicators to increase their relevance to the industry and make them easier to report.
There are now 11 Social Performance Indicator categories:
- Mission specifics
- Governance
- Range of products and services (financial and non-financial)
- Client outreach by lending methodologies
- Measuring client retention
- Social responsibility to clients
- Transparency of the costs of services to clients
- Human resources and staff incentives
- Employment creation and enterprises financed
- Social responsibility to the environment
- Poverty outreach
In addition, the Working Group selected new indicators to be included in a survey for MFIs to report on. These new indicators are capturing new data points particularly relevant to consumer protection and human resources (e.g., report EIR/APR, hours of training per staff working on microfinance).
An MFI can provide any additional information related to the indicators in the column for comments that is included in the reporting structure. Additionally, the report has a glossary that provides clear definitions of all the terms and concepts that it references. SPTF has created a companion resources document as well, which provides reference tools and best practice examples for each indicator.
Since the spring of 2011, every MFI that reports to the MIX has been asked to report on these indicators.
Click here to learn generally about what MIX is doing in the area of social performance.
Click here to learn specifically about the indicators.
For any questions, please e-mail MIX’s Social Performance Manager, Micol Pistelli @
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Updates from MIX
MIX has recently transitioned from a separate social performance blog to an integrated platform of information through the development of a MIX social performance resource center and an integration of social performance articles into current publications (MicroBanking Bulletin and MIX Microfinance World).
In 2010, MIX included social performance analysis in its regional reports for Latin America and the Caribbean, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa. It also wrote a report on the State of Practice of Social Performance Reporting and Management in collaboration with Imp-Act Consortium. More recently, MIX has published a four-part series covering its current understanding of the relationship between key financial and social performance indicators as a prelude to the 2011 SPTF meeting.
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Social Performance Reporting Award
Recognizing Microfinance Practitioners for Outstanding Social Performance Practices
As the microfinance industry evolves, so too does its understanding of its own goals and practices. Over the past few years, the industry has come to recognize that sound financial performance is not sufficient to ensure the achievement of microfinance’s social objectives. Social performance management — the process of ensuring that an MFI acts in a socially responsible manner — has emerged as a crucial factor in addressing this issue.
To recognize those MFIs committed to transparent social performance monitoring and management, MIX, along with CGAP, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, and the Ford Foundation, initiated an award program in 2009 aimed at promoting social performance reporting. In 2010, MIX distributed 29 Gold Awards and 82 Silver Awards to MFIs for their level of disclosure, comprising roughly 31% of all MFIs reporting social performance information to MIX. Twelve networks also received awards for achieving a target of 50% or more of their members reporting social performance data.
In our third year of social performance data collection, MIX and the rest of the awards committee has decided to strengthen the award criteria. In addition to rewarding MFIs on the basis of transparency, this year the award will recognize good practices in social performance management as well. Furthermore, the award committee is excited to announce a brand new level of award: Platinum.
The requirements to receive the various levels of the Social Performance Reporting Awards are as follows:
Silver Award:
- Complete the social performance questionnaire found in the MIX Online Profile Editor
- Submit proper documentation to MIX proving the existence of reported social performance policies
- Report poverty measurement data to MIX
Gold Award:
In addition to completing the requirements of the Silver Award, MFIs must:
- Have a social rating from 2008 or later
- Show social change related to their mission
- Show high levels of client retention based on their respective market
Platinum Award:
In addition to completing the requirements of the Silver and Gold Awards, MFIs must:
- Fill out an additional survey assessing new indicators (MIX will send this survey to all MFIs in August)
To be eligible for the 2011 Social Performance Reporting Awards, MFIs must report social performance data to MIX by September 30, 2011.
Networks and investors will also be awarded for their role in promoting social performance management and reporting. Network Awards feature two levels: Silver (for reaching 60% of affiliates reporting social performance data to MIX) and Gold (for reaching 90% of affiliates reporting social performance data to MIX). Investor awards also feature two levels: Silver (for reaching 55% of financed MFIs reporting social performance data to MIX) and Gold (for reaching 25% of financed MFIs eligible for a Gold Award).
For more information about the Social Performance Reporting Awards, contact Ms. Micol Pistelli: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .