Planning for the International Year of Evaluation in 2015 is taking off! Also referred to as EvalYear, it will be a unique opportunity to focus specifically on evaluation and its importance in the development and implementation of sustainable programs.
June 21, 2013 - 1:45pm
Frequently, analysts or evaluators gather information of workers, children, programs, participants and so on, and subsequently realize that information is missing on some important variables for several respondents in the sample. For example, in a survey we have administered to artists in communities around the country, some artists choose not to report their interests in specific services or income level. Missing data is an issue in nearly every study, and the evaluator has to decide which methods are the most appropriate for dealing with this complex issue.
June 3, 2013 - 4:00pm
May 29, 2013 - 5:26pm
The American Marketing Association defines market research as the process of using information to link the public to marketers. Investopedia says market research allows companies to better understand their target market and how they will respond to a product or service. Market research is traditionally seen as being used in the business sector.
April 9, 2013 - 5:28pm
If you are dealing with very sensitive data, you have to think beyond your own data security systems and also carefully consider the tools you are using. Because of the move to cloud and web-based services, it is important to understand how your data is being kept and stored by outside parties.
March 20, 2013 - 3:37pm
The Improve Group is always looking for creative ways to measure and evaluate program outcomes and their long-term impacts. Ripple effect mapping brings something new to the table by framing analysis around the initial program outcomes and how they connect to and interact with the larger service area, community, etc. It is a participatory strategy for measuring program outcomes, particularly those requiring collaboration among stakeholders or sectors.
March 18, 2013 - 7:35pm
Evaluation for Improvement: A Seven-Step Empowerment Evaluation Approach provides an in-depth analysis and practical application of Empowerment Evaluation. Empowerment Evaluation (EE) is gaining a lot of attention in the evaluation community. The overarching goal of this approach is to empower a program’s stakeholders with the capacity to effectively plan, implement and evaluate their own programs.
March 18, 2013 - 1:53pm
The following blog, Before Spending on a Client Tracking Database, Consider Your Goals, first appeared on MAP for Nonprofits MapTechWorks on March 15, 2013.
February 20, 2013 - 6:53pm
Over the last year, we have had a chance to work with two foundations in the Twin Cities: a family and a community-based foundation. We learned a few lessons from this work about evaluation within a philanthropic context:
December 19, 2012 - 5:45pm
Recently, the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal recognized twelve companies with the Jefferson Award for Public Service. The selected businesses found similar benefits from contributing to their communities: it allowed them to use their own talents to make a difference, address issues important to the company, and helped their employees feel good.