Since not-for-profit businesses are expected to provide a social value in addition to an economic benefit, project analysis must consider social value along with expected cash flows. The summation of a project's net present social and cash flow values is its total net present value (TNPV). If the TNPV is \(\geq 0\), then the project is deemed acceptable.

To perform this analysis, the social value of a project must be quantified in some manner for each year of the project's life, and then discounted back to Year 0. This requires the not-for-profit firm to quantify the social value of the services provided by the project in each year, and to determine the discount rate that is to be applied to those services.

Obviously, such determinations are very subjective. For example, the social value of a service could vary based on who benefits from it. The proper discount rate for a social value stream is also a controversial topic. While few organizations attempt to quantify these benefits, not-for-profit organizations should attempt to do so when evaluating proposed projects given their social-benefit orientation.