This is my second post in a series about Evaluability Assessment (EA). Last time, I introduced EA and its key components. Much of what we do at The IllumiLab is driven by the same motives and the same processes as Evaluability Assessment, including the articulation and assessment of the program theory. Every program has a[…]
Evaluation Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All I’ve written before about the many types of evaluation and the various kinds of questions it can help answer, many of which aren’t familiar to everyday practitioners. When most folks hear “evaluation” they think someone is asking, “Is your program effective at achieving its outcomes?” Yes, that’s one kind of question that[…]
In January and February, I asserted that you’re a project manager and that project planning is a team sport, and I want to expand on those ideas here. So much of the work that nonprofit managers do is about managing change, and that often takes the form of projects. Responding to site visit findings. Implementing[…]
The Challenge of Change Through my consulting and training work, I hear nonprofits share a common challenge: “We know our program’s purpose and value, but funders want more. It’s not enough.” Programs that are in the business of treatment or behavior change – counseling, therapy, skill-building, training, education – don’t face this particular struggle. Their[…]
Unclear roles, responsibilities, and decision-making processes are some of the biggest causes of delays, rework, frustration, and confusion in any organization that relies on teamwork to make the dream work. The same is true in nonprofits. Maybe even more so, because we tend to shortchange valuable self-reflection and planning time in favor of direct service[…]
A project plan is more than a to-do list! A project plan not only lists what needs to be done, but in what order. A smart aleck like myself might say, “Then number the list! Problem solved.” Not so fast. Multi-Tasking Matters How many projects have you managed (for example, holiday meal preparation, bathroom remodel,[…]
I said it last week, and I’ll say it again. Nonprofit professionals wear many hats. When I was a program manager in a small nonprofit, my responsibilities spanned clinical supervision, program design, program evaluation, data management, grant writing, and grant reporting. In this way, our work often overlaps with that of our colleagues on other[…]
Nonprofit professionals often wear many hats. We have many and diverse responsibilities, and those shift constantly as the needs of our clients, the organization, and our environment shift around us. Many of us feel as though we spend 75% of our time on that one seemingly innocuous line in our job descriptions: “Other duties as[…]
Evaluation, performance management, project management, and quality improvement (everything I do) all have at least one thing in common. They start with the end in mind, articulating goals. Before anything else, they ask what the end game is. For example: Evaluation – What do you want to learn from this evaluation? How do you want[…]
This is our third post from guest blogger, Julia Pickup. Julia and I are unicorns in the world of social work. We are therapists who dig numbers. We are bleeding hearts who love to manage and improve processes. We are artists and scientists. You could also say we are bilingual because we can tell stories[…]