Forging a Strategic and Comprehensive Approach to Evaluation Within Public and Nonprofit Organizations

Abstract

The “performance movement” has been a subject of enthusiasm and frustration for evaluators. Performance measurement, data analytics, and program evaluation have been treated as different tasks, and those addressing them speak their own languages in their own circles. We suggest that situating performance measurement and data analytics within the broader field of evaluation would be theoretically parsimonious and fruitful. Scholars and practitioners of performance measurement and analytics may profitably use an evaluation mind-set and frame their tasks within the multidisciplinary field of evaluation practice. With this change in mind-set, we discuss some implications of viewing measurement, analytics, and other evaluation-related capacities within public organizations as part of an integrated, evaluation mission-support function. Working with other mission-support functions, evaluation capacity could be used by operating units to improve learning, strategy, and performance and better accomplish the mission. We outline steps that could be considered to help forge a more strategic and comprehensive approach to evaluation in public and nonprofit organizations.

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