Coaching impact value map

Our social impact


Addiction is at the root of our most destructive and costly social, health and public safety problems. Everything we think and do about this chronic disease has to change. That's why we're committed to using the latest research in peer support, technology and customer experience to inform our work.

In keeping with that commitment, we set out to learn more about the social return on investment (SROI) of our coaching.

See the full impact value summary here.

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“Understanding social return on investment is just one of the many ways we define and measure our impact overall. Knowing the SROI on every dollar spent on peer coaching demonstrates our credibility and keeps us true to our values as an organization. Face It TOGETHER not only improves the wellness of our members, but also brings value to communities.”

– Kristen Goettsch, Face It TOGETHER Senior Evaluation Scientist

Research & results


We partnered with Ecotone, a Minneapolis-based firm that offers evidence-based valuation of impact to businesses, government, nonprofits and social enterprises. Ecotone helps members scale their social impact by communicating the value of that impact to stakeholders and investors.

“In selecting an external party to conduct our social impact analysis, it was important to identify an authentic leader of the field. The Ecotone team members are highly qualified and bring extensive experience to their work,” Goettsch said. “We knew we had selected the right partner when they spent countless hours digging deep into the disease of addiction and FIT model to ensure their subsequent analysis was expansive and evidence-based.”

Ecotone found the following results:

  • There's a $12.40 SROI for every $1 spent on coaching of those with addiction
  • There's a $2.58 SROI for every $1 spent on coaching of loved ones
  • The greatest beneficiaries of our coaching include: individuals (loved ones and persons with disease), government, healthcare, employers and victims of crime 

One of the more surprising results was the loved one coaching impact. Goettsch said because our outcomes regarding loved one members are positive, she anticipated the monetized valuation to be higher. This was largely due to a lack of high quality external data related to the impact of addiction on loved ones. 

“Our loved one program incorporates evidence-based techniques with the primary goal of improving loved one wellness, which often positively impacts the wellbeing of the person with addiction,” she said. “Moving forward, as confidence of the evidence related to loved one wellness is increased, our SROI will increase.”

Results regarding loved ones, those with the disease and stakeholders will be revisited and adjusted by Ecotone and Face It TOGETHER annually. 

“The results of Ecotone’s analysis of FIT’s SROI was intentionally conservative in nature,” Goettsch said. “We consider the figures to be baseline values that we’ll add to as we learn more about the impact of our work on all stakeholders, and as quality evidence from external sources emerges.” 

For a more in-depth look at what went into this analysis, see our technical document here.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

The UN Sustainable Development Goals


The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted in 2015 as part of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In completing this analysis, Ecotone encouraged us to connect our work directly with these goals.

“One of the key factors in our decision to work with Ecotone was their expertise on the global stage, including the World Bank,” Goettsch said.

This internationally agreed-upon list of measures allows us to directly connect our work and overall impact. Additionally, it helps us more easily communicate our work to the global stage.

“Thanks to our work with Ecotone, we’ve not only calculated our SROI, but also proudly determined we’re achieving progress in areas important to society on a global level,” Goettsch said.