basic guide program evaluation

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Basic Guide to Program Evaluation Copyright Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC.Adapted from the Field uide to Nonprofit Program Design, Mar!eting and "#aluation.http$%%&&&.managementhelp.org%e#aluatn%fnl'e#al.htm

(his document pro#ides guidance to&ard planning and implementing an e#aluation process for for)profit or

nonprofit programs )) there are many !inds of e#aluations that can *e applied to programs, for e+ample, goals)*ased,process)*ased, outcomes)*ased, etc.N("$ Nonprofit organi-ations are increasingly interested in outcomes)*ased e#aluation. f you are interested inlearning more a*out outcomes)*ased e#aluation, then see utcomes)Based "#aluations in Nonprofit rgani-ations.N("$ Be sure to see Additional /esourcesand at the end of this document. Also, you might *enefit from re#ie& oftheProgram Planning and Management.Lastly, use theProgram "#aluation Planning Chec!listto help you plan

e#aluations for your programs.

Sections of This Topic Include:Program "#aluation$ carefully getting information to ma!e decisions a*out programs

0here Program "#aluation is 1elpfulBasic ngredients 2you need an organi-ation and program2s33Planning Program "#aluation 2&hat do you &ant to learn a*out, &hat info is needed3Ma4or (ypes of Program "#aluation 2e#aluating program processes, goals, outcomes, etc.3#er#ie& of Methods to Collect nformation 25uestionnaires, inter#ie&s, focus groups, etc.36electing 0hich Methods to 7se 2&hich methods &or! *est to get needed info from audiences3

Analy-ing and nterpreting nformation/eporting "#aluation /esults0ho 6hould Carry ut the "#aluation8Contents of an "#aluation PlanPitfalls to A#oid

A Brief Introduction ...Note that the concept of program e#aluation can include a &ide #ariety of methods to e#aluate many aspects of

programs in nonprofit or for)profit organi-ations. (here are numerous *oo!s and other materials that pro#ide in)depth analysis of e#aluations, their designs, methods, com*ination of methods and techni5ues of analysis. 1o&e#er,personnel do not ha#e to *e e+perts in these topics to carry out a useful program e#aluation. (he 9:;)s de#elopment ofutili-ation)focused e#aluation3, e#aluation has focused on utility, rele#ance and practicality at least as much asscientific #alidity.

:. Many people *elie#e that e#aluation is a*out pro#ing the success or failure of a program. (his myth assumes thatsuccess is implementing the perfect program and ne#er ha#ing to hear from employees, customers or clients again ))
http://www.authenticityconsulting.com/http://www.authenticityconsulting.com/http://www.authenticityconsulting.com/pubs/PG_gdes/PG_pubs.htmhttp://www.authenticityconsulting.com/pubs/PG_gdes/PG_pubs.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/fnl_eval.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/outcomes.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/prog_mng/prog_mng.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/prog_mng/prog_mng.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/prog_mng/prog_mng.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/chklist.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/chklist.htmhttp://www.authenticityconsulting.com/http://www.authenticityconsulting.com/pubs/PG_gdes/PG_pubs.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/fnl_eval.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/outcomes.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/prog_mng/prog_mng.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/chklist.htm


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the program &ill no& run itself perfectly. (his doesn>t happen in real life. 6uccess is remaining open to continuingfeed*ac! and ad4usting the program accordingly. "#aluation gi#es you this continuing feed*ac!.. Many *elie#e that e#aluation is a highly uni5ue and comple+ process that occurs at a certain time in a certain &ay,and almost al&ays includes the use of outside e+perts. Many people *elie#e they must completely understand termssuch as #alidity and relia*ility. (hey don>t ha#e to. (hey do ha#e to consider &hat information they need in order to

ma!e current decisions a*out program issues or needs. And they ha#e to *e &illing to commit to understanding &hat

is really going on. Note that many people regularly underta!e some nature of program e#aluation )) they 4ust don>tdo it in a formal fashion so they don>t get the most out of their efforts or they ma!e conclusions that are inaccurate2some e#aluators &ould disagree that this is program e#aluation if not done methodically3. Conse5uently, they missprecious opportunities to ma!e more of difference for their customer and clients, or to get a *igger *ang for their*uc!.

So !hat is Program Evaluation"

First, &e>ll consider 9&hat is a program89 (ypically, organi-ations &or! from their mission to identify se#eral

o#erall goals &hich must *e reached to accomplish their mission. n nonprofits, each of these goals often *ecomes aprogram. Nonprofit programs are organi-ed methods to pro#ide certain related ser#ices to constituents, e.g., clients,customers, patients, etc. Programs must *e e#aluated to decide if the programs are indeed useful to constituents. n afor)profit, a program is often a one)time effort to produce a ne& product or line of products.

6o, still, &hat is program e#aluation8 Program e#aluation is carefully collecting information a*out a program orsome aspect of a program in order to ma!e necessary decisions a*out the program. Program e#aluation can includeany or a #ariety of at least different types of e#aluation, such as for needs assessments, accreditation, cost%*enefitanalysis, effecti#eness, efficiency, formati#e, summati#e, goal)*ased, process, outcomes, etc. (he type of e#aluationyou underta!e to impro#e your programs depends on &hat you &ant to learn a*out the program. Don>t &orry a*out&hat type of e#aluation you need or are doing )) &orry a*out &hat you need to !no& to ma!e the program decisionsyou need to ma!e, and &orry a*out ho& you can accurately collect and understand that information.

!here Program Evaluation is #elpful

$re%uent &easons:Program e#aluation can$

@. 7nderstand, #erify or increase the impact of products or ser#ices on customers or clients ) (hese 9outcomes9e#aluations are increasingly re5uired *y nonprofit funders as #erification that the nonprofits are indeed helping theirconstituents. (oo often, ser#ice pro#iders 2for)profit or nonprofit3 rely on their o&n instincts and passions toconclude &hat their customers or clients really need and &hether the products or ser#ices are pro#iding &hat isneeded. #er time, these organi-ations find themsel#es in a lot of guessing a*out &hat &ould *e a good product orser#ice, and trial and error a*out ho& ne& products or ser#ices could *e deli#ered.

:. mpro#e deli#ery mechanisms to *e more efficient and less costly ) #er time, product or ser#ice deli#ery ends upto *e an inefficient collection of acti#ities that are less efficient and more costly than need *e. "#aluations canidentify program strengths and &ea!nesses to impro#e the program.. erify that you>re doing &hat you thin! you>re doing ) (ypically, plans a*out ho& to deli#er ser#ices, end upchanging su*stantially as those plans are put into place. "#aluations can #erify if the program is really running as

originally planned.

'ther &easons:

Program e#aluation can$. Facilitate management>s really thin!ing a*out &hat their program is all a*out, including its goals, ho& it meets itgoals and ho& it &ill !no& if it has met its goals or not.. Produce data or #erify results that can *e used for pu*lic relations and promoting ser#ices in the community.E. Produce #alid comparisons *et&een programs to decide &hich should *e retained, e.g., in the face of pending

*udget cuts.. Fully e+amine and descri*e effecti#e programs for duplication else&here.


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Basic Ingredients: 'rgani(ation and Program)s*

+ou ,eed An 'rgani(ation:

(his may seem too o*#ious to discuss, *ut *efore an organi-ation em*ar!s on e#aluating a program, it should ha#e

&ell esta*lished means to conduct itself as an organi-ation, e.g., 2in the case of a nonprofit3 the *oard should *e in

good &or!ing order, the organi-ation should *e staffed and organi-ed to conduct acti#ities to &or! to&ard themission of the organi-ation, and there should *e no current crisis that is clearly more important to address thane#aluating programs.

+ou ,eed Program)s*:

(o effecti#ely conduct program e#aluation, you should first ha#e programs. (hat is, you need a strong impression of&hat your customers or clients actually need. 2Gou may ha#e used a needs assessment to determine these needs ))itself a form of e#aluation, *ut usually the first step in a good mar!eting plan3. Ne+t, you need some effecti#e

methods to meet each of those goals. (hese methods are usually in the form of programs.t often helps to thin! of your programs in terms of inputs, process, outputs and outcomes. nputs are the #ariousresources needed to run the program, e.g., money, facilities, customers, clients, program staff, etc. (he process isho& the program is carried out, e.g., customers are ser#ed, clients are counseled, children are cared for, art is

created, association mem*ers are supported, etc. (he outputs are the units of ser#ice, e.g., num*er of customersser#iced, num*er of clients counseled, children cared for, artistic pieces produced, or mem*ers in the association.

utcomes are the impacts on the customers or on clients recei#ing ser#ices, e.g., increased mental health, safe andsecure de#elopment, richer artistic appreciation and perspecti#es in life, increased effecti#eness among mem*ers,etc.

Planning +our Program Evaluation

-epends on !hat Information +ou ,eed to Mae +our -ecisions and 'n

+our &esources.

ften, management &ants to !no& e#erything a*out their products, ser#ices or programs. 1o&e#er, limitedresources usually force managers to prioriti-e &hat they need to !no& to ma!e current decisions.Gour program e#aluation plans depend on &hat information you need to collect in order to ma!e ma4or decisions.7sually, management is faced &ith ha#ing to ma!e ma4or decisions due to decreased funding, ongoing complaints,

unmet needs among customers and clients, the need to polish ser#ice deli#ery, etc. For e+ample, do you &ant to!no& more a*out &hat is actually going on in your programs, &hether your programs are meeting their goals, theimpact of your programs on customers, etc8 Gou may &ant other information or a com*ination of these. 7ltimately,it>s up to you.But the more focused you are a*out &hat you &ant to e+amine *y the e#aluation, the more efficient you can *e inyour e#aluation, the shorter the time it &ill ta!e you and ultimately the less it &ill cost you 2&hether in your o&n

time, the time of your employees and%or the time of a consultant3.(here are trade offs, too, in the *readth and depth of information you get. (he more *readth you &ant, usually theless depth you get 2unless you ha#e a great deal of resources to carry out the e#aluation3. n the other hand, if you

&ant to e+amine a certain aspect of a program in great detail, you &ill li!ely not get as much information a*outother aspects of the program.For those starting out in program e#aluation or &ho ha#e #ery limited resources, they can use #arious methods to get

a good mi+ of *readth and depth of information. (hey can *oth understand more a*out certain areas of theirprograms and not go *an!rupt doing so.

/ey 0onsiderations:

Consider the follo&ing !ey 5uestions &hen designing a program e#aluation.@. For &hat purposes is the e#aluation *eing done, i.e., &hat do you &ant to *e a*le to decide as a result of thee#aluation8:. 0ho are the audiences for the information from the e#aluation, e.g., customers, *an!ers, funders, *oard,

management, staff, customers, clients, etc.. 0hat !inds of information are needed to ma!e the decision you need to ma!e and%or enlighten your intendedaudiences, e.g., information to really understand the process of the product or program 2its inputs, acti#ities andoutputs3, the customers or clients &ho e+perience the product or program, strengths and &ea!nesses of the product


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or program, *enefits to customers or clients 2outcomes3, ho& the product or program failed and &hy, etc.. From &hat sources should the information *e collected, e.g., employees, customers, clients, groups of customersor clients and employees together, program documentation, etc.. 1o& can that information *e collected in a reasona*le fashion, e.g., 5uestionnaires, inter#ie&s, e+aminingdocumentation, o*ser#ing customers or employees, conducting focus groups among customers or employees, etc.

E. 0hen is the information needed 2so, *y &hen must it *e collected38

. 0hat resources are a#aila*le to collect the information8

Some Ma1or Types of Program Evaluation0hen designing your e#aluation approach, it may *e helpful to re#ie& the follo&ing three types of e#aluations,&hich are rather common in organi-ations. Note that you should not design your e#aluation approach simply *ychoosing &hich of the follo&ing three types you &ill use )) you should design your e#aluation approach *y carefullyaddressing the a*o#e !ey considerations.

Goals2Based Evaluation

ften programs are esta*lished to meet one or more specific goals. (hese goals are often descri*ed in the original

program plans.oal)*ased e#aluations are e#aluating the e+tent to &hich programs are meeting predetermined goals or o*4ecti#es.?uestions to as! yourself &hen designing an e#aluation to see if you reached your goals, are$@. 1o& &ere the program goals 2and o*4ecti#es, is applica*le3 esta*lished8 0as the process effecti#e8:. 0hat is the status of the program>s progress to&ard achie#ing the goals8. 0ill the goals *e achie#ed according to the timelines specified in the program implementation or operations plan8

f not, then &hy8. Do personnel ha#e ade5uate resources 2money, e5uipment, facilities, training, etc.3 to achie#e the goals8. 1o& should priorities *e changed to put more focus on achie#ing the goals8 2Depending on the conte+t, this5uestion might *e #ie&ed as a program management decision, more than an e#aluation 5uestion.3E. 1o& should timelines *e changed 2*e careful a*out ma!ing these changes ) !no& &hy efforts are *ehind schedule*efore timelines are changed38

. 1o& should goals *e changed 2*e careful a*out ma!ing these changes ) !no& &hy efforts are not achie#ing the

goals *efore changing the goals38 6hould any goals *e added or remo#ed8 0hy8


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'utcomes2Based Evaluation

Program e#aluation &ith an outcomes focus is increasingly important for nonprofits and as!ed for *y funders.Anoutcomes)*ased e#aluation facilitates your as!ing if your organi-ation is really doing the right program acti#ities to*ring a*out the outcomes you *elie#e 2or *etter yet, you>#e #erified3 to *e needed *y your clients 2rather than 4ustengaging in *usy acti#ities &hich seem reasona*le to do at the time3. utcomes are *enefits to clients from

participation in the program. utcomes are usually in terms of enhanced learning 2!no&ledge, perceptions%attitudesor s!ills3 or conditions, e.g., increased literacy, self)reliance, etc. utcomes are often confused &ith program outputsor units of ser#ices, e.g., the num*er of clients &ho &ent through a program.(he 7nited 0ay of America2http$%%&&&.united&ay.org%outcomes%3 pro#ides an e+cellent o#er#ie& of outcomes)*ased e#aluation, including introduction to outcomes measurement, a program outcome model, &hy to measureoutcomes, use of program outcome findings *y agencies, eight steps to success for measuring outcomes, e+amplesof outcomes and outcome indicators for #arious programs and the resources needed for measuring outcomes. (he

follo&ing information is a top)le#el summary of information from this site.(o accomplish an outcomes)*ased e#aluation, you should first pilot, or test, this e#aluation approach on one or t&oprograms at most 2*efore doing all programs3.(he general steps to accomplish an outcomes)*ased e#aluation include to$@. dentify the ma4or outcomes that you &ant to e+amine or #erify for the program under e#aluation. Gou mightreflect on your mission 2the o#erall purpose of your organi-ation3 and as! yourself &hat impacts you &ill ha#e on

your clients as you &or! to&ards your mission. For e+ample, if your o#erall mission is to pro#ide shelter andresources to a*used &omen, then as! yourself &hat *enefits this &ill ha#e on those &omen if you effecti#elypro#ide them shelter and other ser#ices or resources. As a last resort, you might as! yourself, 90hat ma4or acti#itiesare &e doing no&89 and then for each acti#ity, as! 90hy are &e doing that89 (he ans&er to this 90hy89 5uestion isusually an outcome. (his 9last resort9 approach, though, may 4ust end up 4ustifying ineffecti#e acti#ities you aredoing no&, rather than e+amining &hat you should *e doing in the first place.

:. Choose the outcomes that you &ant to e+amine, prioriti-e the outcomes and, if your time and resources arelimited, pic! the top t&o to four most important outcomes to e+amine for no&.. For each outcome, specify &hat o*ser#a*le measures, or indicators, &ill suggest that you>re achie#ing that !eyoutcome &ith your clients. (his is often the most important and enlightening step in outcomes)*ased e#aluation.1o&e#er, it is often the most challenging and e#en confusing step, too, *ecause you>re suddenly going from a ratherintangi*le concept, e.g., increased self)reliance, to specific acti#ities, e.g., supporting clients to get themsel#es to and

from &or!, staying off drugs and alcohol, etc. t helps to ha#e a 9de#il>s ad#ocate9 during this phase of identifying

indicators, i.e., someone &ho can 5uestion &hy you can assume that an outcome &as reached *ecause certainassociated indicators &ere present.. 6pecify a 9target9 goal of clients, i.e., &hat num*er or percent of clients you commit to achie#ing specificoutcomes &ith, e.g., 9increased self)reliance 2an outcome3 for ;= of adult, African American &omen li#ing in theinner city of Minneapolis as e#idenced *y the follo&ing measures 2indicators3 ...9

. dentify &hat information is needed to sho& these indicators, e.g., you>ll need to !no& ho& many clients in thetarget group &ent through the program, ho& many of them relia*ly undertoo! their o&n transportation to &or! andstayed off drugs, etc. f your program is ne&, you may need to e#aluate the process in the program to #erify that theprogram is indeed carried out according to your original plans. 2Michael Patton, prominent researcher, &riter andconsultant in e#aluation, suggests that the most important type of e#aluation to carry out may *e this implementatione#aluation to #erify that your program ended up to *e implemented as you originally planned.3

E. Decide ho& can that information *e efficiently and realistically gathered 2see 6electing 0hich Methods to 7se*elo&3. Consider program documentation, o*ser#ation of program personnel and clients in the program,

5uestionnaires and inter#ie&s a*out clients percei#ed *enefits from the program, case studies of program failuresand successes, etc. Gou may not need all of the a*o#e. 2see #er#ie& of Methods to Collect nformation*elo&3.. Analy-e and report the findings 2see Analy-ing and nterpreting nformation*elo&3.

'vervie3 of Methods to 0ollect Information(he follo&ing ta*le pro#ides an o#er#ie& of the ma4or methods used for collecting data during e#aluations.

Method 'verall Purpose Advantages 0hallenges
http://www.unitedway.org/outcomes/http://www.unitedway.org/outcomes/http://www.unitedway.org/outcomes/


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5uestionnaires,sur#eys,chec!lists

&hen need to 5uic!ly and%or

easily get lots of informationfrom people in a nonthreatening &ay

)can complete anonymously

)ine+pensi#e to administer)easy to compare and analy-e)administer to many people)can get lots of data)many sample 5uestionnaires

already e+ist

)might not get careful feed*ac!

)&ording can *ias client>sresponses)are impersonal)in sur#eys, may need samplinge+pert

) doesn>t get full story

inter#ie&s

&hen &ant to fully understandsomeone>s impressions or

e+periences, or learn morea*out their ans&ers to5uestionnaires

)get full range and depth ofinformation

)de#elops relationship &ith client)can *e fle+i*le &ith client

)can ta!e much time)can *e hard to analy-e andcompare

)can *e costly)inter#ie&er can *ias client>sresponses

documentationre#ie&

&hen &ant impression of ho&program operates &ithoutinterrupting the programI is

from re#ie& of applications,finances, memos, minutes, etc.

)get comprehensi#e and historicalinformation)doesn>t interrupt program orclient>s routine in program)information already e+ists

)fe& *iases a*out information

)often ta!es much time)info may *e incomplete)need to *e 5uite clear a*out&hat loo!ing for

)not fle+i*le means to get dataIdata restricted to &hat alreadye+ists

o*ser#ation

to gather accurate informationa*out ho& a program actuallyoperates, particularly a*outprocesses

)#ie& operations of a program asthey are actually occurring)can adapt to e#ents as they occur

)can *e difficult to interpret seen

*eha#iors)can *e comple+ to categori-eo*ser#ations)can influence *eha#iors ofprogram participants)can *e e+pensi#e

focus groups

e+plore a topic in depththrough group discussion, e.g.,

a*out reactions to ane+perience or suggestion,

understanding commoncomplaints, etc.I useful ine#aluation and mar!eting

)5uic!ly and relia*ly get commonimpressions

)can *e efficient &ay to get muchrange and depth of information in

short time) can con#ey !ey informationa*out programs

)can *e hard to analy-e

responses)need good facilitator for safetyand closure

)difficult to schedule E)< peopletogether

case studies

to fully understand or depictclient>s e+periences in aprogram, and conductcomprehensi#e e+aminationthrough cross comparison ofcases

)fully depicts client>s e+periencein program input, process andresults)po&erful means to portrayprogram to outsiders

)usually 5uite time consuming tocollect, organi-e and descri*e)represents depth of information,rather than *readth

Also see:Appreciati#e n5uiry6ur#ey Design

Ethics: Informed 0onsent from Program Participants

Note that if you plan to include in your e#aluation, the focus and reporting on personal information a*out customers

or clients participating in the e#aluation, then you should first gain their consent to do so. (hey should understand&hat you>re doing &ith them in the e#aluation and ho& any information associated &ith them &ill *e reported. Goushould clearly con#ey terms of confidentiality regarding access to e#aluation results. (hey should ha#e the right toparticipate or not. 1a#e participants re#ie& and sign an informed consent form. 6ee the sample informed)consentform.

#o3 to Apply 0ertain Methods

Purposes and Formats of ?uestionsDe#eloping ?uestionnairesConducting nter#ie&s
http://www.managementhelp.org/commskls/appr_inq/appr_inq.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/commskls/surveys/surveys.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/consent.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/consent.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/dsn_ques.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/dsn_ques.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/questnrs.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/intrview.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/commskls/appr_inq/appr_inq.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/commskls/surveys/surveys.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/consent.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/consent.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/dsn_ques.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/questnrs.htmhttp://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/intrview.htm


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:. rgani-e comments into similar categories, e.g., concerns, suggestions, strengths, &ea!nesses, similare+periences, program inputs, recommendations, outputs, outcome indicators, etc.. La*el the categories or themes, e.g., concerns, suggestions, etc.. Attempt to identify patterns, or associations and causal relationships in the themes, e.g., all people &ho attendedprograms in the e#ening had similar concerns, most people came from the same geographic area, most people &ere

in the same salary range, &hat processes or e#ents respondents e+perience during the program, etc.

. Keep all commentary for se#eral years after completion in case needed for future reference.

Interpreting Information:

@. Attempt to put the information in perspecti#e, e.g., compare results to &hat you e+pected, promised resultsImanagement or program staffI any common standards for your ser#icesI original program goals 2especially if you>reconducting a program e#aluation3I indications of accomplishing outcomes 2especially if you>re conducting anoutcomes e#aluation3I description of the program>s e+periences, strengths, &ea!nesses, etc. 2especially if you>reconducting a process e#aluation3.

:. Consider recommendations to help program staff impro#e the program, conclusions a*out program operations ormeeting goals, etc.. /ecord conclusions and recommendations in a report document, and associate interpretations to 4ustify yourconclusions or recommendations.

&eporting Evaluation &esults@.(he le#el and scope of content depends on to &hom the report is intended, e.g., to *an!ers, funders, employees,customers, clients, the pu*lic, etc.

:. Be sure employees ha#e a chance to carefully re#ie& and discuss the report. (ranslate recommendations to actionplans, including &ho is going to do &hat a*out the program and *y &hen.. Ban!ers or funders &ill li!ely re5uire a report that includes an e+ecuti#e summary 2this is a summary ofconclusions and recommendations, not a listing of &hat sections of information are in the report )) that>s a ta*le ofcontents3I description of the organi-ation and the program under e#aluationI e+planation of the e#aluation goals,methods, and analysis proceduresI listing of conclusions and recommendationsI and any rele#ant attachments, e.g.,

inclusion of e#aluation 5uestionnaires, inter#ie& guides, etc. (he *an!er or funder may &ant the report to *e

deli#ered as a presentation, accompanied *y an o#er#ie& of the report. r, the *an!er or funder may &ant to re#ie&the report alone.. Be sure to record the e#aluation plans and acti#ities in an e#aluation plan &hich can *e referenced &hen a similarprogram e#aluation is needed in the future.

0ontents of an Evaluation &eport 22 E7ample

An e+ample of e#aluation report contents is included later on *elo& in this document. Clic!Contents of an

"#aluation Plan*ut, don>t forget to loo! at the ne+t section 90ho 6hould Carry ut the "#aluation9.

!ho Should 0arry 'ut the Evaluation"deally, management decides &hat the e#aluation goals should *e. (hen an e#aluation e+pert helps the organi-ationto determine &hat the e#aluation methods should *e, and ho& the resulting data &ill *e analy-ed and reported *ac!to the organi-ation. Most organi-ations do not ha#e the resources to carry out the ideal e#aluation.6till, they can do the :;= of effort needed to generate


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0ontents of an Evaluation PlanDe#elop an e#aluation plan to ensure your program e#aluations are carried out efficiently in the future. Note that*an!ers or funders may &ant or *enefit from a copy of this plan."nsure your e#aluation plan is documented so you can regularly and efficiently carry out your e#aluation acti#ities./ecord enough information in the plan so that someone outside of the organi-ation can understand &hat you>re

e#aluating and ho&. Consider the follo&ing format for your report$@. (itle Page 2name of the organi-ation that is *eing, or has a product%ser#ice%program that is *eing, e#aluatedI date3

:. (a*le of Contents. "+ecuti#e 6ummary 2one)page, concise o#er#ie& of findings and recommendations3. Purpose of the /eport 2&hat type of e#aluation2s3 &as conducted, &hat decisions are *eing aided *y the findingsof the e#aluation, &ho is ma!ing the decision, etc.3. Bac!ground A*out rgani-ation and Product%6er#ice%Program that is *eing e#aluateda3 rgani-ation Description%1istory

*3 Product%6er#ice%Program Description 2that is *eing e#aluated3i3 Pro*lem 6tatement 2in the case of nonprofits, description of the community need that is *eing met *y theproduct%ser#ice%program3ii3 #erall oal2s3 of Product%6er#ice%Programiii3 utcomes 2or client%customer impacts3 and Performance Measures 2that can *e measured as indicators to&ard

the outcomes3i#3 Acti#ities%(echnologies of the Product%6er#ice%Program 2general description of ho& the product%ser#ice%programis de#eloped and deli#ered3#3 6taffing 2description of the num*er of personnel and roles in the organi-ation that are rele#ant to de#eloping anddeli#ering the product%ser#ice%program3E3 #erall "#aluation oals 2eg, &hat 5uestions are *eing ans&ered *y the e#aluation33 Methodology

a3 (ypes of data%information that &ere collected*3 1o& data%information &ere collected 2&hat instruments &ere used, etc.3c3 1o& data%information &ere analy-edd3 Limitations of the e#aluation 2eg, cautions a*out findings%conclusions and ho& to use the findings%conclusions,etc.3t *al! at e#aluation *ecause it seems far too 9scientific.9 t>s not. 7sually the first :;= of effort &ill generate

the first t &orry a*out the plan *eing perfect. t>s far more important to dosomething, than to &ait until e#ery last detail has *een tested.. 0or! hard to include some inter#ie&s in your e#aluation methods. ?uestionnaires don>t capture 9the story,9 and

the story is usually the most po&erful depiction of the *enefits of your ser#ices.. Don>t inter#ie& 4ust the successes. Gou>ll learn a great deal a*out the program *y understanding its failures,dropouts, etc.. Don>t thro& a&ay e#aluation results once a report has *een generated. /esults don>t ta!e up much room, and theycan pro#ide precious information later &hen trying to understand changes in the program.

General &esourcesuides for many types of e#aluationProgram Manager>s uide to "#aluationAnalytical Methods in Maternal and Child 1ealth
http://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/evaluatn.htm#anchor227968http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/other_resrch/pm_guide_eval/index.htmlhttp://ask.hrsa.gov/detail_materials.cfm?ProdID=1566http://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/evaluatn.htm#anchor227968http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/other_resrch/pm_guide_eval/index.htmlhttp://ask.hrsa.gov/detail_materials.cfm?ProdID=1566


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0hat is program e#aluation$ A set of *eginners guides
http://gsociology.icaap.org/methods/BasicguidesHandouts.htmlhttp://gsociology.icaap.org/methods/BasicguidesHandouts.html

basic guide program evaluation

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