Management and quality guru W. Edwards Deming said, “Without data, you’re just another person with an opinion.” Does that sound like one of your committee meetings? Lots of opinions? Do your committees glance at reports you spent hours preparing and then say things like, “And?” or “So?” or “Yeah, but . . .” Do your[…]
Many of us do work that is inherently and inarguably valuable. There is an intuitive and logical connection between the work we do and some larger, later good. Yet our actual, direct impact is hard to define or know. For years, these programs have been funded based on their face value, but many funders now[…]
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[…]
This is the fourth and final post in a series in which I implore nonprofits to do some critical reflecting and planning before you embark on any evaluation work or make changes to your data collection forms, tools, or processes. I think there are four key things organizations need to know when planning their evaluation[…]
Happy New Year! This is the time of year when many of us make resolutions or set goals. Lose weight. Learn a new skill. Build our networks. Save a certain amount of money. I am wired for quality improvement, so I still do this every year. Though, I could benefit from following some of my[…]
In my last post, I argued that you can’t measure what you haven’t defined. Too many nonprofits try to measure broad or vague outcome statements, which results in confusing surveys and largely useless data. Identifying clear, specific indicators makes measurement easier and more meaningful. Indicators are the critical middle step between outcomes and measurement tools.[…]
That might not sound like an earth-shattering proclamation, and I don’t know if I’m the first or only one to say it. But I’m going to make that my primary call to action for nonprofits! Nonprofits know we are (supposed to be) making a difference in people’s lives, and we know we are supposed to[…]
For years, I’ve had an image in my head that represented the results of nonprofits’ often piecemeal, reactive efforts to respond to stakeholder demands and ill-fitting funding opportunities. It can be a patched together, mismatched, less-than-functional mishmash of unclear intentions and unfocused efforts. In my research, I came across a term in home remodeling: subtraction[…]
As a consultant and grant-maker, I’ve read a lot of outcome statements – the good, the bad, and the ugly. From that experience, I’ve identified my top 10 tips for writing strong outcome statements. Overall, if nothing else, make sure your outcomes are meaningful, measurable, and manageable. This requires that they be specific. Read on[…]
In my last post, I argued that one of the main reasons that front-line staff (case managers, therapists, youth workers, nurses, mentors, volunteers) in nonprofits might not get invested in collecting and using data is because it’s the wrong data. Too often, nonprofits settle for counting what’s easy to count rather than measuring what matters[…]