Last month, I shared the basics of grant project evaluation. If you have chosen to evaluate your grant project yourself, I recommend you create a schedule specifically for evaluation.

Here's why... If you're like me, what gets scheduled gets done. Otherwise, I'm busy, I forget, or other things take priority. It's easy to find yourself at grant reporting time (or writing your next proposal) with no data to show for your current project. Yikes!

If you need a place to start with scheduling, here is my free Evaluation Timeline Template. (When it opens in Google, go to File -> Download to use it on your own computer.) I hope this tool helps you see the big picture of your evaluation.

Here are six main steps of project evaluation that you will see in my schedule:

1. Planning

   Set aside time to think through the questions you're trying to answer and what data would help answer those questions. [1 week to 1 month]

2. Data collection

   You can get perspectives from people (through surveys, interviews, etc) and "numbers" data from project records. [1-2 months]

3. Data analysis

   You will need time to review and make sense of your data, then answer your original evaluation questions. [1-2 months]

4. Report writing

   Depending on your audience, your report could be one page or 20! Or it could take another form, like a presentation or newsletter. Whatever the case, I recommend lots of data visualizations, not just boring text. And just like in proposal writing, start with a first draft! [1-2 months]

5. Report editing

   One of the biggest mistakes I see is not scheduling time for edits. Especially when working with your team or clients, you want enough time to share ideas and write recommendations based on the data. [1 month]

6. Report presentation

   This is the fun part! You get to share what you've learned with the people who care. Your colleagues, your participants, your funders, your community. Use your evaluation to answer questions and move your project into its future! [1 month]

Good luck scheduling your evaluation! Or if this totally is not your thing, please pass it on to your schedule person. You can't do everything. ;)

This post is adapted from the CGS blog vault. Original post was made on 8/24/23.