Evaluation is about using monitoring and other information you collect to make judgements about your project. It is also about using the information to make changes and improvements.
Evaluation aims to answer agreed questions and to make a judgement against specific criteria. Like other research, for a good evaluation, data must be collected and analysed systematically, and its interpretation considered carefully. Assessing 'value' - or the worth of something - and then taking action makes evaluation distinctive. The results of an evaluation are intended to be used.
There are many different perspectives and approaches to evaluation. Answering questions such as 'Why are we doing it?' 'Who is the evaluation for?' and 'What are the key issues to address?' will help you decide whether you wish to self-evaluate or to have an external evaluation. The questions will help you to think about what you want to focus on. For example, this could be:
- your organisational structure and how it works
- how you carry out your services or activities
- how users experience the project
- what changes or benefits the project brings about
Why evaluate?
For learning and development
Monitoring and evaluating your services will help you assess how well you are doing in order to help you do it better. It is about asking what has happened and why - what is and what is not working. It is about using evaluation to learn more about an organisation's activities, and then using what has been learnt.
For accountability - to show others that you are effective
Funders and other 'stakeholders' want to know whether a project has spent its money appropriately. There is pressure from funders to provide them with evidence of success. Many projects have to respond to this demand in order to survive.
Evaluation for learning and development
Using evaluation to learn more about an organisation's activities, and then using what has been learnt.
Evaluation for accountability
To demonstrate achievements.
There may be some tension between these two approaches. But it is important for many voluntary organisations to find ways in which both the need for accountability and the need for learning can be met. Many funders are also becoming more interested not only in whether a project has worked, but why.
The purpose of evaluation will change the type of questions asked. For accountability, the questions might be:
- has the project worked?
- how has money been spent?
- should the project continue?
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