Browse assessment tools Resources
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"Participatory Performance Story Reporting" Clear Horizon, an M&E company in Australia, describes its participatory approach, specifically as it relates to the method of performance story reporting (PPSR). The company defines performance story reports as "essentially a short report about how a program contributed to outcomes." This page on their website includes links to other pages that describe the structure, process, and limitations of this the PPSR method. Author: Clear Horizon Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Dec 31, 2008 Be the first to review this resource! Download (161.39 KB) -
A Menu of Assessment Activities This brief menu of questions provides a simple, straightforward overview of evaluation activities. Author: Brett A. Magill Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Feb 24, 2010
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Advocacy Capacity Tool The Advocacy Capacity Tool (ACT) is for organizational assessment. ACT, released in May 2012, is a self-assessment tool that allows organizations of any size and issue area to gauge their advocacy skills, knowledge and abilities.
The Tool includes four sections of assessment, and gives users an individual scoring report as well as the ability to compare results with other organizations of similar size, issue area, and location.
Author: Bolder Advocacy (an initiative of Alliance for Justice) Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: May 1, 2012 Be the first to review this resource! Download (719.51 KB) -
Advocacy Capacity Tool (ACT) Report: First 100 User Groups (Executive Summary) In September 2013, Alliance for Justice’s Bolder Advocacy Initiative released a report offering a glimpse into how nonprofit organizations view their capacity for public policy work. The report is based on data from the first 100 groups to complete AFJ’s online self-assessment tool, the Advocacy Capacity Tool.Author: Alliance for Justice Type: Research & Reports Date: Sep 1, 2013 Be the first to review this resource! Download (703.04 KB) -
Alliance for Justice Advocacy Capacity Tool 2013: Public Aggregate Report In September 2013, Alliance for Justice’s Bolder Advocacy Initiative released a report offering a glimpse into how nonprofit organizations view their capacity for public policy work. The report is based on data from the first 100 groups to complete AFJ’s online self-assessment tool, the Advocacy Capacity Tool.Author: UW-Stout Applied Research Center Type: Research & Reports Date: Sep 1, 2013 Be the first to review this resource! Download (1.76 MB) -
An Advocate’s Perspective: Ten Considerations for Effective Advocacy Evaluation Ted Lempert, president of the Oakland, California-based advocacy and research organization Children Now, provides his ten considerations for effective advocacy evaluation. Lempert presented this document at the Advocacy Evaluation Advances convening in Los Angeles in January, 2009.
Do you agree with these ten considerations? Should something be added to this list? Please use the comment section below to contribute to the discussion.
Author: Lempert, Ted Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Jan 20, 2009 Be the first to review this resource! Download (66.81 KB) -
Assessing and Evaluating Change in Advocacy Fields This white paper aims to bring together emerging ideas about how to assess advocacy fields and evaluate advocacy field building initiatives. Dr. Lynn and other evaluators have developed a core set of dimensions to help organize thinking about these complex advocacy fields, and have begun experimenting with indicators of a strong field, tools for assessing the baseline of a field, and strategies for measuring change in fields. This paper seeks to test and refine some of these ideas.Author: Dr. Jewlya Lynn Type: Research & Reports Date: Sep 1, 2014 Be the first to review this resource! Download (790.23 KB) -
Assessing Capacity for Community Change Efforts: Learnings From an Adaptive Initiative (Presentation slides) Should community change efforts be focused on funding coalitions or funding a flexible group of community leaders? The Kansas Health Foundation has embraced a four-pronged community change model that targets community leaders as key agents of change within each of their funded communities. Author: Kat Athanasiades, Veena Pankaj, Deanna Van Hersh Type: Presentation Slides Date: Oct 17, 2013 Point K Pick Be the first to review this resource! Download (682.32 KB) -
Assessing Capacity for Community Change Efforts: Learnings From an Adaptive Initiative [Slides] Should community change efforts be focused on funding coalitions or funding a flexible group of community leaders? The Kansas Health Foundation has embraced a four-pronged community change model that targets community leaders as key agents of change within each of their funded communities. Innovation Network, the evaluation partner for the Kansas Health Foundation's Healthy Communities Initiative, developed and deployed an assessment tool designed to contribute to the assessment of leadership capacity in effecting community change. Author: Kat Athanasiades, Veena Pankaj, and Deanna Van Hersh Type: Presentation Slides Date: Oct 17, 2013 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Assessing the Capacity of Community Coalitions to Advocate for Change (Presentation Handout) Research has shown that high-capacity coalitions are more successful in effecting community change. While a number of coalition assessment tools have been developed, documentation is scarce regarding how they are implemented, how the results are used, and whether they are predictive of coalition success in collaborative community change efforts.
Author: Veena Pankaj, Kat Athanasiades, Ann Emery, Johanna Morariu Type: Presentation Slides Date: May 22, 2013 Point K Pick Be the first to review this resource! Download (377.49 KB) -
Blog: "Monitoring and Evaluation NEWS" Monitoring and Evaluation NEWS is a frequently-updated blog / news website managed by Rick Davies in the UK. The site focuses on M&E methods for aid / development programs, and includes news, opinion, jobs, and events.
Author: Davies, Rick Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 1, 1997 Point K Pick Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
BoardSource Knowledge Center BoardSource is a nonprofit organization that offers consulting, publications, and membership services to increase the effectiveness of nonprofit boards. Though many of the resources on BoardSource's website are available only to members, don't let that scare you. The Knowledge Center section of the website contains several free-access resources, including articles, white papers, and an extensive FAQ file. Author: BoardSource Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 18, 2008
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Building a Culture of Evaluation: 30 Ideas to Apply to Your Organization This fun infographic by Community Solutions shows 30 ways to build a culture of evaluation into your organization. Examples include starting with simple evaluations to demonstrate benefits and worth, positioning evaluation as a way of giving staff a voice, and scheduling time up front in the program planning phase to discuss evaluation.
Author: Community Solutions Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Jan 1, 2011 Be the first to review this resource! Download (148.96 KB) -
Capaciteria Capaciteria is a community site for nonprofit capacity building. A free membership gives you access to a broad collection of capacity-building resources (over 3400 links!). The site encourages rating of resources and forum discussions, but it looks like those features aren't being fully used. Still, there's a lot of knowledge here. Author: Internaut Consulting Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 18, 2008
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Capacity and Organizational Readiness for Evaluation (CORE) Tool Capacity and Organizational Readiness for Evaluation (CORE) Tool is a succinct, fifteen-question organizational assessment tool. The CORE Tool assesses organizational readiness for evaluation and learning on three dimensions: Culture/Learning Environment; Organizational Leadership; and Resources, Systems, Structures, and Process. Author: Johanna Morariu, Ehren Reed, and Kathy Brennan Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Mar 8, 2011 Point K Pick Be the first to review this resource! Download (115.62 KB) -
Capacity Building and Organizational Effectiveness The Alliance for Nonprofit Management defines what capacity building is and provides an excerpt from Deborah Lindell's book, "Evaluation of Capacity Building: Lessons from the Field." Author: Alliance for Nonprofit Management Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 18, 2008
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Catholic Relief Services' (CRS) Guidance for Developing Logical and Results Frameworks This document summarizes Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) guidance for developing logical and results frameworks.
• logical framework “is a systematic and visual way to present and share your understanding of the relationships among the resources you have to operate your program, the activities you plan, and the changes or results you hope to achieve.”CRS’ proframe and the U.K. Department for International Development’s (DFID’s) logframe are examples of logical frameworks.
Author: Carlisle J. Levine Type: Workbooks & Guides Date: Jan 31, 2007 Be the first to review this resource! Download (196.44 KB) -
Community Action Resources for Inuit, Métis and First Nations: Evaluating This kit is a self-help tool for Aboriginal people who want to get a community development project off the ground. The series of six manuals contains information, tips, examples and ready-to-use charts that you can copy and use for yourself or to train others in your community. It is intended to be user-friendly, emphasizing questions such as what, why, when and how to accomplish the different steps of a community development project.
Author: Health Canada Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: May 7, 2007
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Community Development Evaluation Storymap This interactive resource offers concise explanations and real-world applications of capacity assessment, performance measurement, and outcome evaluation approaches, along with information about recommended tools and resources for each process. Author: NeighborWorks® America Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jun 28, 2006 Be the first to review this resource! Download (6.01 MB) -
Community Tool Box The Community Toolbox offers a wide range of free information and tools to support you in your work:
- Browse 46 Chapters through which you can obtain more than 300 different sections providing practical, step-by-step guidance in community-building skills.
- Access succinct guidance on 16 core competencies for community work, including how to conduct a community assessment, develop a strategic plan, write a grant, or evaluate your efforts.
Author: University of Kansas, Community Health and Development Workgroup Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 1, 2015 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Create a "Culture of Evaluation" In the June 20, 2007 issue the e-newsletter "Nonprofit Tools You Can Use" from the Fieldstone Alliance, Vince Hyman introduces an excerpt from the book Information Gold Mine: Innovative Uses of Evaluation by Paul Mattessich, et al. This excerpt discusses how a "culture of evaluation" is an important factor in increasing the likelihood an organization will be willing to change based on the results of an evaluation. The authors also offer some insights and advice on how organizations can promote this type of culture. Author: Vince Hyman (Field Stone Alliance); Paul Mattessich, et al. Type: Newsletters & Periodicals Date: Jun 20, 2007 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Evaluation as a Tool for Creating and Leading a Results-Based Learning Culture [Slides] Johanna Morariu and Will Fenn discussed effective evaluation initiatives, highlighting useful tools such as those available from Innovation Network’s Point K at the Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy 2013 National Conference in Chicago, IL. Author: Johanna Morariu and Will Fenn Type: Presentation Slides Date: Apr 5, 2013 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Evaluation Concepts Mindmap The Evaluation Concepts Mindmap is a visual showing different considerations in evaluation, such as assessment types, evaluation cycle, and data collection, and the components of those considerations. This is a useful tool for evaluation planning, as well as for gaining a broad perspective of what is important in the field of evaluation—all on one page. Author: Johanna Morariu, Innovation Network Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Mar 28, 2013 Point K Pick
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Evaluation Needs Assessment The Evaluation Needs Assessment was created for use with a grantee cohort of twelve organizations, which received grant support and capacity building services for a period of three years.Directions: Share the tool in advance of an in-person meeting to allow for preparation. Meet to discuss an organization’s existing evaluation practice and goals for improvement. Seek mutual agreement of the evaluation capacity provider and grantee regarding how to apply evaluation technical assistance.Author: Johanna Morariu Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Apr 25, 2011 Be the first to review this resource! Download (215.84 KB) -
Evaluation Principles and Practices: An Internal Working Paper The purpose of this document is to advance the Foundation’s existing work so that our evaluation practices become more consistent across the organization. We hope to create more common understanding of our philosophy, purpose, and expectations regarding evaluation as well as clarify staff roles and available support. With more consistency and shared understanding, we expect less wheel re-creation across program areas, greater learning from each other’s efforts, and faster progress in designing meaningful evaluations and applying the results.
Author: Fay Twersky & Karen Lindblom Type: Research & Reports Date: Jan 22, 2013 Be the first to review this resource! Download (1.42 MB)