13 - Getting the Full Story through Monitoring and Evaluation

Abstract Information: Evaluations are conducted to tell the story of a program –of what happened, how activities aligned with and achieved goals, and lessons learned to improve future programs. However, the story the evaluation tells is as holistic as its ability to capture the nuances of the program, from changes over time to incorporating the perspectives of implementing partners and program participants. Best practices for evaluations include integrating routinely collected monitoring data and evaluation data, revising processes to respond to project changes, and collaborating with program partners. These best practices are not always possible when: evaluations are conducted by a different organization than the one collecting monitoring data; monitoring data are not linked to evaluation questions; evaluations do not include inputs from the various partners involved; monitoring data is not shared with evaluators; or evolving program implementation plans are not reflected in monitoring or evaluation data. This panel will share challenges, lessons learned, and best practices of two program evaluations. Panelists will highlight the processes and tools they used to incorporate and adopt monitoring data into their evaluations through examples of domestic and global evaluations. The presentations will give insights into telling the full story of a program by integrating evaluation and monitoring data to address knowledge gaps, incorporating the voices of partners and program implementers through collaboration, and adapting evaluations to respond to and capture changes to the program over time.

Relevance Statement: Evaluations can tell stories. However, external evaluators cannot capture an accurate story of the program without a clear understanding of what activities have been implemented, who implemented them, and who participated in them, and the involvement of a variety of perspectives and insights from implementing partners, different types of participants, and local partners. These insights are essential to understand the realities of a program and are important to incorporate and elevate into the story an evaluation tells. Comprehensive evaluations that incorporate various data sources, such as monitoring data in addition to evaluation data, and evolve over the life of the program tell more powerful stories by reflecting the voices of multiple partners at different time points. While evaluations conducted in the US and outside of the US have their unique challenges, shared best practices the panel will discuss include the integration of monitoring data into evaluations, value of collaboration with all partners, and importance of adapting evaluations to address evolving program implementation. Panelists will include RTI evaluators from public health disciplines who conduct evaluations and collaborate with their clients and program implementers. Aligning with this year’s theme “The Power of Storytelling” and reflecting the evaluation principles of systematic inquiry, competence, and integrity, the panelists’ insights will highlight how monitoring and evaluation data integration and incorporation of multiple perspectives of partners are essential to tell a more holistic story of a program’s impact. The format of this proposal will stand out at the conferences as the panelists represent different technical areas and partners and will share their perspectives of being involved in US domestic and international settings and the unique challenges and similarities that arise from both.