This is the fourth and final post in a series on Evaluative Thinking (ET) in nonprofits. In the first post, I shared definitions of ET and contrasted it with evaluation itself. Next, I shared some tips and tools for encouraging and practicing ET. And last time, I shared some examples of what ET looks like when applied to our administrative efforts. This time, we’ll look at ET applied to program design, management, service delivery, and evaluation.
The Bruner Foundation has identified an elaborate (though not exhaustive) list of some of the behaviors in organizations that are indicative of evaluative thinking in each core area of operations. I encourage you to check out the list and see then what else you might add. Below are some examples from their report as well as some of my own observations and recommendations.
Organizations that Use Evaluative Thinking in . . .
Program Growth & Design
- Systematically assess the landscape of services in their communities to identify gaps, redundancies, and trends.
- Systematically and regularly assess (with data) their own capacity for growth and their capabilities for new services.
- Incorporate evaluation findings into program design.
- Involve multiple groups of stakeholders (clients, staff, managers, subject matter experts, etc.) in program design and planning.
- Develop and document program theories and models to guide implementation.
- Develop evaluation strategies at the time of program design to ensure meaningful and manageable data collection is embedded in program operations.
- Embed processes for evaluation, reflection, learning, and improvement in regular program cycles.
Program Management
- Regularly monitor and reflect on data describing program implementation and quality.
- Create time and space to regularly reflect as a team on what’s working and what’s not working.
- Continually identify opportunities for improvement.
- Incorporate data into real-time course corrections.
Program Evaluation
- Regularly gather data to describe and evaluate program characteristics, activities, outputs, and outcomes.
- Involve multiple stakeholder groups (clients, staff, managers, development professionals, etc.) in developing and revising evaluation plans and tools as well as interpreting and using data.
- Share program evaluation results with multiple stakeholder groups in meaningful and usable formats.
- Use program evaluation results for learning and improvement of the program itself as well as of the evaluation strategies and tools.
- Ensure adequate training, tools, and support for ongoing, meaningful evaluation efforts.
Client Interaction
- Regularly assess the needs of target populations as well as individual clients and use that data to inform organizational strategy, program design and improvement, learning, and messaging.
- Regularly assess client satisfaction and other quality indicators (engagement, retention, etc.).
- Use client satisfaction and outcome data together to improve programs.
Staff Development
- Conduct an annual assessment of staff development necessary to ensure successful implementation of existing programs, to prepare for changes in the environment or program, and to adopt emerging best practices.
- Develop a plan and evaluate staff development.
- Evaluate the impact of professional development efforts (workshops, webinars, etc.) on staff capabilities and development.
The Bottom Line
To wrap up this series, I’ll revisit my thesis from the first post:
Evaluative thinking is more broadly applied and deeply embedded than evaluation activities might be. It is integrated throughout an entire organization and all its operations. It is not isolated to one program, one purpose, one person or department, or one point in time. And it is motivated by a natural curiosity and desires to learn and improve. Evaluation requires certain skills, resources, and capacities. Evaluative thinking requires certain attitudes, motives, and habits, too.
By cultivating an organizational culture and habit of evaluative thinking, nonprofits can elevate their evaluation, quality improvement, and performance management efforts so that they are no longer required burdens but rather valued inquiries. Evaluative thinking is the attitude and approach that brings life, meaning, and value to otherwise required and oft-resented activities.
Evaluative thinking is one way by which we ensure that our work is focused, fact-based, and goal-driven.