Evaluation
What is Evaluation?
Evaluation is an extremely useful and pragmatical discipline that can be done in many ways. When it is focused on results, it tells us if something (an intervention with goals) worked or not.
It is an essential tool for planning, monitoring, accountability and organizational learning.
How to do Evaluation
Evaluation is a study, a process of data collection and analysis, that can last several weeks, months and even years.
Once objectives and methodology have been defined, it is about…
Go and meet the people involved
To understand the context of what is being evaluated.
To know who the main actors are.
To know their interests, preferences and concerns, which will guide the evaluation.
Listen, listen, and then listen
It is guided by the evaluation questions, compass of the exercise. Once defined, it is time to listen and learn how different actors (including those whose voices are least heard) have to say.
Evaluation is a team effort.
The evaluation team relays on the cooperation of many people (organization, partners, authorities, and of course, the recipients of the intervention.
After all the collective effort, results and findings emerge, allowing us to see and understand what worked, for whom, how, and what not so much.
This contributes to stakeholders learning and informing decision-making for action.
Our favorite approaches
These are the approaches we most frequently use:
UTILISATION-focused Evaluation
We are completely focused on being useful and delivering value to those working to make the world a better place.
Gender and HR focused evaluation
For avoiding equity blindness, in particular gender blindness, we purposefully include these lens in our work.
Theory-based evaluation
Speaking of clarity, theories of change make the intervention logic clear which supports the discussions around the intervention and its results.
VISUAL REPORTS
Our little superpower of making information visual (clear and attractive) is of course one of our signature style in the written products of the evaluation.
Our toolkit
But we have more.
Evaluate is a science and an art. Our goal is to contribute to make it more effective and useful.
One of our favorite visuals is the Periodic Table of Evaluation that captures many of the elements involved in Evaluation.
You can see its new version here.
Our clients
To know more
If you have questions, do not hesitate to drop a line 🙂
