Theory Of Change
A framework to design and evaluate community initiatives, proven to be key to ensure strategic impact orientation
MEAL Frameworks
A summary of performance metrics and outcomes, specifying targets, timelines, methods as well as planned data collection processes
NGO Management
NGO and partner strategies to ensure successful alignment of different programs to contribute to organisational goals
Impact Measurement Services
Through our Impact measurement services we turn data into insights for replicability, scalability and sustainability of social development programs.
Social Return on
Investment (SROI)
SROI highlights the value created through the lens of stakeholders — social, environmental, and economic. By combining financial data with lived experiences, we demonstrate how programs deliver outcomes beyond financial returns, making impact tangible for funders, partners, and communities.
Longitudinal
Studies
Measuring change over time provides a deeper view of program effectiveness. Our longitudinal studies follow communities and organisations across years, showing what outcomes endure, what shifts, and why. This evidence informs long-term strategies, ensuring programs adapt and remain relevant.
Retrospective
Evaluations
Past work offers important lessons for the future. By analysing existing records alongside community perspectives, we generate evidence on what created value and where gaps remain. These insights strengthen accountability and provide a learning base for designing stronger initiatives going forward.
Quasi
Experimental Studies
When attribution matters, quasi-experimental designs provide reliable insights. By comparing intervention and non-intervention groups, we isolate the real difference made by a program. This design validates effectiveness, highlights enablers and barriers, and strengthens confidence for scaling.
Process Documentation
and Evaluation
Processes shape outcomes as much as activities do. We document key steps, decisions, and adaptations throughout implementation, creating a clear record of how change unfolded. This strengthens organisational learning, supports honest reflection, and ensures effective approaches are improved and replicated.
CSR Portfolio
Assessments
For companies managing multiple CSR initiatives, it’s vital to see the overall picture. We assess entire portfolios across projects, identifying overlaps, synergies, and outcomes. The approach enables more coherent planning, stronger accountability, and improved results for both corporates and communities.
Why Choose Us?
Field
Strength
With a network of more than 5,000 trained enumerators and researchers, we ensure credible, high-quality data collection across diverse geographies and hard-to-reach communities.
Built for the
Long Term
We design digital tools and technology for evaluations that are handed over to organisations, enabling them to sustain measurement long after our engagement.
Global Frameworks,
Local Relevance
We apply global evaluation frameworks while grounding them in Indian realities, balancing funder credibility with community relevance.
Insights,
Not Reports
We move beyond tick-box reporting to deliver actionable insights that strengthen strategy, decision-making, and accountability.
Qualitative-Driven
Evaluations
Numbers tell you what changed; stories explain why. We use interviews, FGDs, and participatory methods to capture lived experiences, giving depth to quantitative findings. These studies surface the human side of impact — the voices, perspectives, and context that bring your programs to life.
Dipstick Virtual
Impact Studies
Quick decisions need quick evidence. Using online surveys, short feedback calls, and virtual FGDs, we gather fast, credible evidence on program effectiveness. These lightweight studies help test ideas, adjust strategies in real time, and demonstrate progress to funders and boards without waiting for long, full evaluations.
Going Beyond Numbers
It’s not just about counting activities, but understanding if initiatives are truly creating change for people and communities.
Transparency & Learning
Structured assessments help organisations stay accountable, learn what is working, and identify areas that need improvement.
The Big Picture View
By blending data, community voices, and expert insights, impact measurement provides a complete picture of outcomes.
Enabling Smarter Decisions
It enables companies, non-profits, and philanthropies to use resources wisely and make better, evidence-based choices.
Building Trust
Clear impact measurement builds confidence with stakeholders and funders through honesty and accountability.
Lasting Change
At its core, it connects intentions with results—turning good ideas into meaningful, sustainable impact for society and the environment.
Importance
Without clear evidence, even well-intentioned programs risk becoming activity-focused rather than change-focused. Impact measurement addresses this gap by showing whether efforts truly improve lives, guiding smarter decisions, and ensuring resources create accountable, lasting impact.
Our Work
Our work spans Theory of Change design, MEAL systems, baselines, needs assessments, and research that help social sector organisations define and measure impact effectively. We support partners in understanding their starting point, articulating outcomes, and building actionable, evidence-based strategies for long-term change.
Youth Empowerment Scale- Akansha Foundation
From Evidence to Empowerment
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The Youth Empowerment Scale was co-designed and validated with 750 young people, capturing shifts in assets, agency, environment, and contributions across diverse contexts.
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The tool highlighted patterns of upward mobility and resulted in an open-source framework that NGOs can now use to benchmark, track, and strengthen youth empowerment outcomes over time.
CSR Portfolio Assessment- L&T
Measuring outcomes, driving accountability
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Fifteen CSR projects were assessed using OECD/DAC criteria and a mixed-methods approach with 1,317 respondents across surveys, interviews, and focus groups.
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The assessment provided evidence on outcomes and sustainability across education, health, and livelihoods, offering actionable recommendations and strengthening MEAL systems to guide future CSR strategy and long-term social value creation.
Social Impact Assessment - Gujarat Metro
Building evidence to rebuild lives
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Nearly 2,000 project-affected persons were engaged through baseline, midline, and endline studies over three years, enabling us to understand how displacement and resettlement shaped people’s lives over time.
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The assessment mapped changes in housing, livelihoods, and community well-being, generating practical evidence to strengthen future urban resettlement policies and implementation practices.
FAQs
Impact measurement tracks if programs create intended change. It matters because it proves results, strengthens stakeholder trust, and guides improvements for future initiatives, ensuring accountability and meaningful social outcomes.
Traditional M&E focuses on tracking activities, outputs, and immediate results. Impact measurement analyses the deeper effects of a programme, the outcomes, causal pathways, and contextual factors that shape change.
We use surveys, interviews, comparisons, and long-term tracking, blending numbers with stories, to provide a complete picture of your program’s impact and the meaningful difference it creates.
Impact measurement reveals if CSR initiatives truly solve problems and improve lives. By aligning with SDGs, companies showcase accountability and their role in driving broader, sustainable social change.
Yes. We design reports that speak the language of each audience, simple visuals for communities, detailed data for boards, and compliance-focused reports for donors, so that insights are accessible, useful, and actionable.
What Our Clients Say
The 4th Wheel helped us build a comprehensive MEAL framework and develop clear outcome grids and data collection tools for our program. They set up a simple digital system that feeds field data into structured spreadsheets, making it easy for us to compare baseline, midline, and endline results. Their support brought much-needed clarity and structure to our monitoring process.
Manvi Bansal
Senior Manager – CSR, Tesco
The needs assessment study conducted by The 4th Wheel was pivotal in creating a data-driven roadmap for our community development work. Their approach ensured that interventions were not just well-designed but also aligned with local priorities and long-term sustainability.
Dr. Rahul Singh
General Manager – CSR, Adani Green Energy Ltd.
Working with 4th Wheel has been a pleasure due to their intelligence, expertise, and professionalism. They instill confidence in their methodology and findings, making them highly recommended.
George J Aikara
Chief Operating Officer- United Way Mumbai
4th Wheel's practical and collaborative approach makes them a wonderful partner, providing an external perspective that supports our work.
Aparna Dubey
M&E Lead- Antarang Foundation
The design of the final report enhanced our ability to communicate complex project information. The infographics were thoughtfully crafted, making the data easily digestible and engaging for a wider audience. By connecting different aspects of the project seamlessly through visuals, percentages, tables, and beneficiary quotes, the report transformed our data into an informative narrative.
Ankit Rastogi
Lead- Impact & Insights, Tata Communications
4th Wheel excels in making data interesting and facilitating meaningful discussions. Their grounded, objective approach and transparency in findings are impressive.
Havovi Wadia
Executive Director, Save the Children India
4th Wheel's success rests on the professionalism, dedication, and curiosity of its staff, with a profound background in research and analytical assessments.
Veronika Schanderl
Executive Manager, Swisscontact
The solutions and workshop methodology enabled fresh insights, helped me to get a fresh and different perspective and understand prevalent best practices. I will be able to use these views and conversations to strengthen partnerships for my organisation.
Suresh Roo
TPCTD
The solutions presented at the workshop have been of great learning to me since they can be included in the programs we are currently undertaking. Through the day’s brainstorming and cross-questioning, I have been convinced that technology is of most importance to strengthen all our development efforts. This workshop has made me realise various ways technology can be used to enhance our work and the lives of our beneficiaries.
Niraj Jani
SAATH Livelihoods
Why Impact Measurement Matters
Impact measurement helps organisations understand what worked, for whom, in what context, and why. Development programmes rarely unfold the same way across communities, and without good measurement, it becomes difficult to see the real changes taking place beneath the surface.
When done well, impact measurement helps organisations recognise how context shapes results and why different groups experience programmes differently. It improves programme implementation by highlighting what is working and what isn’t, allowing teams to make timely adjustments rather than waiting until the end of a project.
Impact measurement builds a shared vision across teams. Clear outcomes and evidence help staff, partners, and leadership align around the change they are working toward. Strong measurement practices reinforce accountability to communities and funders by demonstrating a commitment to learning, transparency, and responsible use of resources.
Impact measurement turns learning into action. It helps organisations understand change more deeply, make informed decisions, and design programmes that are responsive, relevant, and rooted in the realities of the communities they serve.
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