Value for Money

Chapter 2Six Ways to Show Value for Money

Sarah Robertson provides counseling services at food banks in Canada. As a counselor for the Catholic Family Services, she helps individuals who are having financial problems and cannot afford to pay for food [1].

Sarah helps them understand their situation and plots a path for improvement. Sometimes the citizens need a job, or their spouse needs a job, or perhaps a better job. Maybe there is a serious medical problem that is preventing employment that requires care through the provincial health system. Although the government provides healthcare, citizens still have to pay some fees. Also, a medical problem takes time away from work. A family member may have an addiction and needs help to overcome the addiction. Perhaps a spouse is headed for incarceration or is currently incarcerated. Perhaps the family needs legal assistance. Any of these situations can mean disaster for a low to middle-income family. Sarah provides essential counseling for these unfortunate citizens of the province, with the aim of resolving their “presenting issue.”

Sarah was somewhat surprised when a representative of the provincial government, who funds her particular program, visited her and asked about results. When she asked for clarification on the kind of results desired, she was asked very directly, “Could you show the ROI of the counseling?” She responded, “What’s ROI?”

The government representative explained, “It is return on investment. We are investing ...