Reflections from the Social Impact Summit 2025: Measuring What Matters
As GECA continues to evolve its purpose-led impact, CEO Josh Begbie shares his reflections from the Social Impact Summit 2025. In this piece, Josh explores key takeaways from the summit—particularly the importance of embracing imperfect but meaningful approaches to measuring social impact—and outlines how GECA is applying these insights as part of its impact journey.
Attending the Social Impact Summit 2025 in Sydney last week left me inspired and excited. It was a welcome opportunity to step outside the day-to-day and reflect on how GECA can continue to lead with purpose while improving how we measure and talk about the full impact of our organisation.The standout takeaway? Measuring social impact doesn't have to be perfect to be valuable--just do it.Across the summit, I was inspired by the diverse and practical approaches that purpose-led organisations use to evaluate and discuss their impact. It was wonderful to see the variability in approach and complexity, but the same commitment to measuring what matters meaningfully and rigorously. All of these values align beautifully with what GECA holds dear.
Turning Theory into Practice
One of the most engaging parts of the summit was the "Theory to Practice" hands-on session led by Royden Howie (Impact Institute) and Rhiannon Edge (Redkite). It opened a pragmatic pathway to a process that can feel overwhelming. The workshop laid out a potential roadmap for developing the tools you need in your organisation, while separating the essentials from the nice-to-haves and highlighting potential pitfalls and tips for young players.This resonated deeply with us. At GECA, we've long been committed to delivering meaningful, lasting outcomes pragmatically and transparently across sustainability. Now, we're looking forward to further codifying our theory of change and related social impact measures.Why? Because, we want to strengthen the way we talk about what we do, and how we know it's working and growing. We also want our licensees to be able to tell that fuller story--they are doing the hard work and we want them to celebrate the holistic impact of their choices.
Building Our Own Tools—Step by Step
We're not ready to start yet, but this event confirmed why we have included it in our current strategic plan. In all likelihood, GECA will begin with a light-touch version of our theory of change and impact framework—simple, usable, and designed to evolve. We'll start simple because the consensus among practitioners is clear: having a tool you can use now and adapt as you grow is more valuable than waiting for the perfect, fully developed system. Over time, we'll iterate and expand as our capabilities and experience allow.We also recognise that social impact tools are not just about looking back, they should also help shape where we're heading. They are powerful ways to guide decisions about new tools and products, or how to prioritise elements within your strategic plan. It also helps us understand that impact doesn't always track with revenue, and that's okay, because for GECA, the greater goal is driving positive, systemic change (although in a financially sustainable way). These tools will also allow us to connect in new dimensions with our licensees, customers, and community--telling the broader story of our work more clearly and confidently.
Engaging Our Value Chain
We won't be doing this in a vacuum. As we shape our approach to measuring impact, we'll be seeking input from across our value chain from manufacturers to specifiers to end users and certifiers. We're excited for what's ahead. This is just the beginning of a new chapter for GECA's impact journey. Watch this space.
Josh Begbie, GECA CEO