Selecting a logic model template: Some useful (and very readable) guides to building logic models
The first thing to know about logic models and logic model guides is there is no single righ way to build a logic model. You’ll want to try out a few templates and guides and see what works best for your program and your organization. Here are a handful of short and readable guides…
On writing good performance measures: Who cares?
Sometimes, when I’m working with staff to document their program’s performance measures, I notice that they come up with some very specific descriptions of what it takes to run a quality program. For example, ideal staffing or indicators of an efficient process. I’ll call these kinds of metrics process indicators. They are checklist items, or…
What internal evaluators do: Formative evaluation
One of the roles that the internal evaluation team or measurement, evaluation, and learning (MEL) plays is to gather data on ongoing programs. They provide this data to program managers so that they can ensure that the programs are working as intended and make corrections as they go.
I’ve been gathering data in the field. How do I know when I’m done?
Professional program evaluators always start a study with a sampling plan. But program managers and other professionals often find themselves gathering data in a less structured way. We often need to gather feedback or input from the community without developing a research plan in advance. For example, you might want to gauge community interest in a…
Better survey results: Writing great questions
Surveys are a go-to method in program evaluation, used both to collect feedback from individuals who have participated in our programs and also to understand the needs and opinions of people in the communities we serve. Particularly because we can often distribute them electronically and collect responses easily, we employ a lot of them. But…
The difference between strategic management and process improvement
In my blog posts, I talk a lot about various types of performance measures, how to develop and collect them, and how to incorporate them in a logic model. One thing that I have been thinking a lot about, recently, is the role that different measures play in different types of decision-making, specifically process improvement…
What administrative data is and why you should use it
When we are setting out to evaluate or report on our programs, we often assume that we have to create new data, generally by going back to our participants and having them complete surveys, questionnaires, or even tests. However, there is often a huge trove of information that already exists in your intake system, attendance…
The difference between process indicators and performance measures
Many organizations struggle with writing their own performance measures. The goal is to create performance measures that describe the program’s impact well and are useful for strategic management. Sometimes, when I’m working with staff to document their program’s performance measures, I notice that they come up with some very specific descriptions of what it takes…
Demographic data on a survey: Why to collect it and what to do with it
When we’re conducting a survey for program evaluation, we have probably all been told to collect some basic demographic data on every survey, but what data and why? The most important thing you can do with your demographic data is to demonstrate that the people who responded to your survey represent – in some basic…
Implementing surveys in program evaluation: Informed consent
In program evaluation, we often don’t have to go through and IRB or ethics review before we conduct a survey. That means we are responsible for conducting an ethical survey ourselves. The consent process is one area where it’s easy to make mistakes that can have real ethical implications. Here, I outline some common pitfalls…
I help mission-based organizations measure their impact so that they can do what they do well. I started my nonprofit career as a teacher in workforce development and adult basic education. It was important work and I was worried that we didn’t really know if we were doing it well. In the process of trying to answer that question, I got a Masters in Education and a PhD in Social Policy, and became an evaluator.
©2022 Blakely Consulting, LLC.
Web Development by Michael Wilson