Evaluate

You need to look at what went well and what didn't in your project, although it might be difficult for you to be objective. But the more you learn from it, the more useful your evaluation will be.

At your early planning stage, you should have put an evaluation system in place, and if you are responsive, you should have been processing feedback from your staff and clients all along. Re-read the relevant sections of the Community Development Guide and Ausguide.

The evaluation should be done in writing. If your full final report covers the whole project, the evaluation should be a coherent separate chapter.

Community input

Evaluate the project in consultation with community stakeholders. Make sure that your evaluation is responsive to community needs and issues.

Your personal role

Reflect on your abilities and what you as a person brought to the project. Then answer the following:

  1. Did you meet professional standards?
  2. How sensitive are you to conflict, culture and context?
  3. How effective are you in negotiating, communicating and making decisions?
  4. What do you still want to learn? And what is the best way to learn it?
  5. What changes and trends do you see emerging? What do you need to do to adjust to them?
  6. Did you achieve your personal goals?

Project goals

  1. What criteria did you use to judge the value and effectiveness of the strategy?
  2. Did your services effectively meet client needs?
    1. Did your organization reach the project goals?
    2. Ensure client’s file notes are complete, up to date and include the client’s stage of decision making on each occasion
    3. Implement reflective practice strategies to ensure feedback is sought and incorporated in services delivery

Evaluate your evaluation

Review your evaluation methodology for appropriateness, and revise it if necessary. Make sure that the method is still valid, and say very clearly why you changed the plan.

Lessons learned

  1. Based on your evaluation, what would you do differently next time?
  2. Considering your evaluation results, what changes will you make to the project plan for the next stages?
  3. If you are not doing a research project, you should make recommendations for future developments