Evaluation
FCG, Evaluation, and You!
Definition of Evaluation
Evaluation is a systematic process for an organization to obtain information on its activities, its impacts, and the effectiveness of its work, so that it can improve its activities and describe its accomplishments.
Why Evaluation?
Program evaluation is a critical management function that provides in-depth feedback to managers about whether their programs are effective and efficient - whether they are achieving the goals of the program.
FCG evaluations address three foundational questions -
- What's so?
Description of the situation, context and variables that contribute (help or hinder) to success - So what?
Why is the program or variables around it important? What works/doesn't work and why? - What next?
What should a program do to improve, based on empirical data.
Benefits of Evaluation
- To assist an organization learn and improve its programs and services
- To provide the evidence to justify the existence (or budget) of the program and how it contributes to the organization's goals and objectives
- To detect errors and to recognize success - find out what works, what doesn't and any unanticipated outcomes
- To make real improvements to the program - evaluations can identify where resources are best allocated and where any changes in people, processes or policies is needed
- To drive program and policy outcomes - sometimes just the conduct of an evaluation can improve a program, and evaluation can be used to reinforce what you want constituents to know or do
- To fulfill legislative requirements - such as the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), and the Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART)
- To keep federally funded programs accountable to the American citizen—evaluation is one of the best ways a government program can share its story with those we are trying to serve
FCG Evaluation Services
- FCG provides evaluation services to federal organizations and programs using quantitative, qualitative, experimental design, appreciative evaluation and other techniques.These services include:
- Evaluation capacity building - we help organizations develop outcome-oriented assessment frameworks, skills in evaluation, and internal evaluation functions and evaluation systems
- Evaluation strategies - We assist with helping organizations develop evaluation strategies and plans that take into account most rigorous and feasible methodologies for the resources available
- Program Evaluations - we will conduct independent program evaluations for organizations. We have a network of experienced evaluators who can be quickly mobilized to conduct all kinds of evaluations, including:
- Needs Assessments
- Program Design Assessments
- Process and implementation evaluations
- Evaluability Assessments
- Outcome Assessments
- Net impact evaluations
- Meta-Evaluations
- Logic model development - we assist organizations with documenting and coming to consensus on their program’s theory of change as the foundation to all measurement and evaluation
- Information collection - we assist organizations in developing surveys or other data collection instruments, including interviews and focus groups
- Data analysis and reporting - we will analyze data collected by organizations, or other evaluators and provide it in formats that are easily digestible for government decision-makers
Some of Our Evaluation Customers
Peace Corps
George C. Marshall Center for European Security Studies, U.S. Department of Defense
US Patent and Trademark Office
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Minority Business Development Agency, U.S. Department of Commerce
Centers for Disease Control, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
U.S. Department of Education
Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
For more information, contact FCG at (202) 513-7687 or visit our website at fcg.nbc.gov.
Last Reviewed: May 2, 2012