Writing for evaluation reports
Here is an interesting post from the Better Evaluation blog on writing evaluation reports, with their key points summarised as follows:
- Get to the point
- Develop the best structure for your report
- Report strong findings
- Write for your users
- Be aware of how the evaluation’s scope can affect its useability
- Allocate time for writing, editing, and quality assurance processes
In summary, the post highlights as key: “Evaluators need to communicate better and foster the utilisation of evaluation findings through clear and engaging writing“.
How to – outcome monitoring and harvesting
Often it’s useful in an evaluation during data collection to define or check what the given intervention sought to achieve in terms of outcomes – both intended and unintended. One approach that has become popular is outcome monitoring or harvesting. The World Bank has produced a very useful guide in this area that provides practical guidance – do take a look!
Nudge theory and evaluation
There has been a lot of talk about “nudge theory”- basically people being guided, encouraged and nudged towards the right decision, rather than being told – and now the evaluation unit of the UN agency, WIPO has produced a guide on how nudge theory can apply to evaluation – interesting reading!
new e-learning modules for social impact organisations
I am happy to announce a series of e-learning modules I designed with em4 for social impact organisations that would like to learn more about monitoring and evaluation:
For volunteers, staff and board members working towards social impact, whether it be in health, environment, community initiatives or other focuses, these three modules will be of great interest and use. Each module is stand-alone and self-paced; taking about an hour per module to complete.
Learn more about the e-learning modules>>
New resource: The communicators guide to research, analysis and evaluation
The Institute for Public Relations has produced an excellent new guide: “The communicators guide to research, analysis and evaluation“.
The guide highlights:
“The importance of communication research, analysis, and evaluation continues to grow due to the pace of change in the marketplace and the corresponding need to make smarter and better decisions at the speed of business. The ability for an organization to successfully transform during this time of dynamic change requires the active leadership of the Chief Communication Officer and the application of talent and technology to perform the work, measure its impact, and improve at each stage of the public relations process.”
View the guide here>>
New report: Effective risk communication for environment and health
I am very happy to be able to share a report I co-researched and authored with my colleague Dr Sarah Grosso for the World Health Organization on “Effective risk communication for environment and health” (pdf).
The report provides an overview of the latest trends, theories and concepts of risk communication for environment and health (EH), and key challenges and good practices are identified. The report’s findings are complemented by three cases studies: promoting indoor air quality in schools in Hungary; water contamination in the Veneto region, Italy; and heat health action in Styria, Austria.
Measurement Month: Proving & Improving Communications – Smoke Signals Podcast
As part of AMEC’s Measurement Month, I featured on the Smoke Signals Podcast with Paul Cheal, discussing about the practices and challenges of evaluating communications.
Are communicators measuring the right things?
Here is an interesting post summarizing a 2021 roundtable discussion from the US-based Institute of Public Relations on “Are PR Pros [communicators] measuring the right things?”. Some highlights from the discussion:
“Katie Paine (Paine Publishing): All the things that we have traditionally measured don’t seem as valuable today.–Long ago, the “Grammy of Communications” went to the person who got the most impressions and reported the most hits or clicks or whatever. That’s not going to happen today. I don’t know a lot of organizations that measure on that. Generally, they’re measuring on some kind of change, whether it’s increased awareness, or increased traffic, or saving lives.“
“Elizabeth Rector (Cisco): I think it’s an “and.” I think some of the standard metrics aren’t going away, it’s just multiplied, and then we are asking how they come together. That’s blowing up in my world. And finding comms people…finding people who can have that mindset and that blend, because most of my kind of comms insights people have been very much traditional comms, and some of the outcome, like the reputation and brand and all of that. But as we’re getting into thought leadership, and driving to the website, and views, and paid media that’s all now under comms’ umbrella.”
“Joseph Czabovsky (University of North Carolina): I don’t think the fundamentals have changed. As you were saying Katie, it’s still the different elements of funnel, or whether we’re doing awareness, attitude, or behavior, essentially. I think that’s still the core of what we do and what we measure“.
Campaign evaluation case study
Here is an interesting case study presenting an evaluation of a European-wide smoking cessation campaign (in other words, trying to get people to stop smoking) that I was involved with. Some interesting findings on campaigns and results in this challenging area.
Evaluating Advocacy: Challenges, Methodologies and Solutions
Today I was very happy to be with the European Centre for Public Affairs for a training on advocacy evaluation. For those who are interested, you can see my presentation slides below and I’ve also listed a range of advocacy evaluation and related resources.
Advocacy evaluation an related resources
Theory of change:
Julia Coffman & Tanya Beer (2015), The Advocacy Strategy Framework; A tool for articulating an advocacy theory of change
UNICEF (2014), Theory of change; methodological briefs
Advocacy monitoring and evaluation methods/approaches:
Robin Kane et al (2017), Contribution Analysis in Policy Work; Assessing Advocacy’s Influence
Harvard Family Research Project (2009), A User’s Guide to Advocacy Evaluation Planning
Julia Coffman (2019), Current Advocacy Evaluation Practice, Center for Evaluation Innovation.
Julia Coffman and Ehren Reed (2019), Unique Methods in Advocacy Evaluation
Oxfam, Process Tracing – Draft Protocol
Guidelines:
CARE (2018), Advocacy and Influencing MEL Guidance
UNICEF, Monitoring and evaluating advocacy; companion to the advocacy toolkit
ODI (2014), Monitoring and evaluation of policy influence and advocacy
Communicating monitoring and evaluation results:
Glenn O’Neil (2017), A Guide: Integrating Communication in Evaluation
CDC (2013), Evaluation Reporting: A Guide to Help Ensure Use of Evaluation Findings
“Think pieces” on advocacy evaluation:
Examples of advocacy evaluation reports:
UNHCR (2019), Evaluation of Effectiveness and Relevance of Advocacy Approaches in Europe
Oxfam International (2013), Evaluation of global communications campaign GROW
intelligent measurement 