Laura K. Budzyna

About Laura K. Budzyna

Laura Budzyna is an evaluation consultant committed to participatory, flexible, and learning-focused measurement and management for the social impact sector. Specializing in the evaluation of innovative programs, businesses, and funds, she works hand-in-hand with impact professionals to design measurement strategies that can adapt to evolving projects with emergent outcomes. At MIT D-Lab, Laura led the visioning and development of the lab’s impact measurement strategy, implemented evaluations on 20+ D-Lab inclusive innovation programs, and advised D-Lab\'s partner organizations on their impact measurement strategies. Prior to MIT D-Lab, Laura’s evaluation consulting focused on financial inclusion, with clients including Triple Jump, NYC’s Office of Financial Empowerment, the Microinsurance Centre, and the Corporation for Enterprise Development. She holds an MPA in Development Practice from Columbia University’s School for International and Public Affairs. She is the author of The Metrics Café, a framework that aims to bridge the divide between funders’ and grantees’ impact management needs, and a co-author of Ventures at the Helm, a guide that helps ventures tailor their impact measurement to the phase they are in and the questions at hand.

Experience

1. Founder and Principal Consultant

   Beyond Measure

   Aug 2021 — Present · Melrose, MA, US

   I work hand-in-hand with impact professionals to design measurement strategies that can adapt to evolving projects with emergent outcomes, and I collaborate on initiatives that help to build (and demystify!) the impact measurement field. My clients and collaborators include the Trust, Accountability and Inclusion Collaborative, BlueMark, the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, Builders Vision, Stardust Equity, Docusign, Fondation Botnar, Public Works Alliance, the Said Business School at Oxford University, The Social Change Agency, the William Davidson Institute, Impact Frontiers, the Young Trustees Movement, MIT Solve, and Laboratoria.

Education

• Columbia | SIPA

  MPA

  2010 — 2012

• Middlebury College

  Bachelor of Arts

  2004 — 2008

• Universidad Católica de Valparaíso

  Coursework in Latin American history and culture

  2006 — 2007

Skills

• Qualitative Research
• Policy Analysis
• Public Health
• Curriculum Design
• Capacity Building
• Writing
• Spanish
• Teaching
• Project Management
• Grants
• International Development
• Data Analysis
• Program Evaluation
• Community Outreach
• Sustainability
• Program Management
• Translation
• Research
• Nonprofits
• Focus Group Facilitation