How do I use evaluation findings?
How do you know if you are doing the right things, in the right ways, at the right time to get the results you want? First you need to have the right information available to you to make decisions.
Evaluation ensures that the information people need to determine what is and isn’t working in a project/program is collected as evidence, analysed and contextualised in accordance with stakeholder interests and project/program goals. This information is then provided back to stakeholders as intelligence and insights to assist different stakeholders to make decisions about the project/program and/or its operating environment. Evaluation unpacks the complexity of systems in which you are trying to change for the better, evaluation intelligence assists you to better understand how different systems affect and are affected by projects/programs.
Evaluation can answer the questions about a problem and/or provide intelligence to assist stakeholders to design a solution. Evaluation findings are evidence based so potential users of findings can have confidence in them. Such evidence can assist stakeholders to better understand areas of interest that are outside of their own role and experience areas of expertise. Using evaluation findings can better ensure decisions are less biassed based on individual views, perspectives and experience and enable the experience of others who are involved in a project/program to be considered to inform decisions that could impact on stakeholders and the project/program’s likelihood of success.
For instance, an evaluation may provide a greater understanding of whether a particular new intervention might enhance student outcomes in a particular way before the intervention is implemented more broadly across an area. Evaluation of the use of the intervention in a controlled area can assist stakeholders to define what the goals of the intervention are, what activity is required to deliver the intervention in the target area, what resources are needed to support delivery of activity, the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders involved in the delivery of the intervention, the outputs that the activity will drive and the outcomes (short, medium and long-term) which will evidence if the intervention and associated activity is working or not.
Evaluation findings can be used to:
The table below outlines the types of intelligence that evaluation findings can provide as well as the targeted insights that can be gained to help inform your decision making.
Adapted from the Education Endowment Foundation Evidence to Decision Framework
| Intelligence type | Systems insights provided examples |
|---|---|
| Priority of the problem | Do the findings deal with interests of a priority? |
| Benefits and harms |
What is the magnitude of potential benefits of the project/program? What is the magnitude of potential risks/harms of the project/program? |
| Certainty of the intelligence |
What is the certainty of the intelligence? For example:
|
| Transferability | Is intelligence relevant to the setting you are interested in? |
| Balance of effects | Does the balance between desirable and undesirable outcomes favour the project/program or something else? |
| Resource use | What are the resource requirements? |
| Equity | What are the effects of the program/project for different groups? |
| Acceptability | Is the project/program implementation acceptable to stakeholders? |
| Feasibility | Is the project/program feasible? |
What are the types of evaluation utilisation?
How do I use evaluation findings?
Evaluations promote a culture of organizational learning and enhance accountability for results. In order for evaluations to fully play this role, management needs to give careful consideration to evaluation findings, recommendations and lessons learned.
The findings and learning from evaluation can be used in different ways by different audiences in context to the project/program being evaluated.
- Program team: May use findings; to implement improvements to the project/program activity; adjust inputs; and/or refine other aspects of project/program design.
- Senior executive: May use findings; to identify organisational barriers to the success of the project/program; action changes to policies and/or other administrative systems.
- Broader organisation: May use findings to; improve services in other areas of the organisation; advocate externally to stakeholders for sector changes; and/or for strategic benefits
Additional resources
Asian Development Bank: Maximising the Use of Evaluation Findings
New Philanthropy Capital (NPC): How can you use your findings to improve your work?