Output monitoring for strengthening social cohesion

The challenge

As a non-profit limited company, Common Purpose runs a broad portfolio, ranging from funded projects for children and young people to trainings and leadership workshops for companies. The individual teams work fairly autonomously and independently of one another, and some of them already collect data on their impact. At the same time, there are no dedicated capacities for building shared, central steering instruments that would allow both the management and the teams to make data-driven decisions.

The project

The project will set up a monitoring system in Excel that brings together key figures (above all output metrics) from the individual teams. It covers the following areas of work:

• Developing and defining metrics: Together with representatives of Common Purpose, simple metrics for the individual teams and projects are defined and developed, based on existing data and other requirements (e.g. funding agreements).
• Data processing & data management: The central data source is Common Purpose's CRM, which unfortunately offers no interfaces. The project therefore sets up a semi-automated process using Power Query to make data available in Excel on the Web and to consolidate it.
• Optional: Development of an Excel template for submitted offers in the Customized Programme area
• Analysis in Excel: Creation of pivot tables and charts
• Handover

Project area 1 - Data basis and metrics

• Review of the data from the CRM
• Collecting and developing relevant output metrics in coordination with the individual teams, e.g. on the basis of funding agreements. For example:
  • Number of participants in the various programmes, number of workshops
  • Dropouts (status)
  • New or returning participants (status)
  • Speakers / room bookings (tbd)
• Working out target values in order to operationalise goal achievement

Project area 2 - Data structure, data processes, automation

• Setting up Excel file(s) and a folder structure in Microsoft SharePoint
• Defining requirements for Excel exports from the CRM and any manual intermediate steps, with a focus on data minimisation
• Setting up data management and data processes using Power Query and Excel
• Linking the data in a single Excel file for analysis

Project area 3 - Analysis

• Comprehensible analysis of the data in Excel (pivot tables, Excel charts), presenting the metrics from project area 1

Project area 4 - Handover

The project is implemented in CorrelAid's Microsoft environment in order to give the volunteers access to the relevant licences. At the end of the project, you will guide Common Purpose in setting up the structure on their side and transferring it into their own Microsoft environment.

The impact

The output monitoring gives the management and the project leads the data basis they need to make data-driven decisions about steering their own work. In addition, the analyses and the improved data situation help with communication towards external stakeholders.

This allows Common Purpose to continue enabling young people and leaders to shift perspectives - and to strengthen social cohesion in the process.

Timeline

• Call for applications open: until 25 August 2026
• Team selection: until 27 August 2026
• Onboarding: 27-28 August 2026
• Kickoff (online): 1 September 2026, 6-8 pm
• Project duration: until the end of February 2027

Your team and your role

In the Data4Good project with Common Purpose you will become part of a team consisting of Lena from Common Purpose and 1-3 other CorrelAid volunteers. Together with the others, you can put your skills and potential to work for a good cause, help a great non-profit and, above all, have fun. This is what awaits you as a CorrelAid Data4Good volunteer:

• Learning together: A CorrelAid project is a great place to share knowledge, learn new skills or deepen existing ones and apply them in practice.
• Taking responsibility (together): Together with your team colleagues you carry the responsibility for the whole project. You are (co-)responsible for particular tasks and outputs, depending on your team role (see below).
• Support: Within the team you support each other, coordinate and share knowledge. In the CorrelAid Slack community you can ask for advice. The CorrelAid staff team is available in the background if problems arise.
• Flexibility: You can organise your time flexibly and work on the project whenever and wherever you want. You can work on your own or meet someone from the team for (online) coworking or sparring.
• Low-threshold online communication: You coordinate with the other team members via Slack and regularly take part in meetings with your project partners (roughly every 1-3 weeks, depending on the project and phase). Occasionally, additional appointments or agreements with project partners or team members may be necessary.
• A good environment for everyone: CorrelAid's goal is that everyone in our community - regardless of background, prior experience, gender and other characteristics - can contribute and develop. An appreciative and safe environment is the prerequisite for this. The values and principles laid down in our Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct therefore apply to the collaboration within the project team. With the ethics commission and the community team there are concrete and effective structures that support you if you notice or experience violations of these rules and values during the project.
• Time commitment: You can expect a time commitment of about 4 hours per week.

To help you assess where in the team you can best contribute your skills and experience, we outline the different team roles below. In the application form you can select one or more roles you see yourself in.

There are two special roles that do not require any technical knowledge or prior experience:

• Team coordinator: As team coordinator you do not need technical knowledge, but motivation and enjoyment in coordinating and organising teams.
• Team trainee: The team trainee role is for people who have little or no technical knowledge yet but would like to acquire technical skills during the project. For this project, the team trainee role has already been filled.