How M&E can help–Uses of measurement and evaluation systems

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Knowing how you want to use information on public engagement and other programs helps determine what you need to know–and therefore what you need to collect. This brief list of measurement and evaluation functions provides a framework used throughout this site, pointing to possible tracking and evaluation questions, data categories and characteristics, and strength of evidence needed.

Uses of measurement and evaluation

Program evaluation and portfolio M&E uses

Program improvement. Most programs understand the importance of using evaluation to assess and improve their effectiveness. At the portfolio level, it is also possible to evaluate whether or not high-level goals such as engagement with specific types of activities, issues, and audiences are being achieved, and to identify types of support needed.

Research/knowledge development. Program and impact evaluation can develop generalizable knowledge about whether (and in which circumstances) a specific intervention is effective in meeting target outcomes.

Marketing. The contributions of a public engagement portfolio or program can be invisible for external audiences. While individual programs often have powerful stories, portfolio-level summaries can help the public and specific stakeholders understand the high-level ways that engagement provides public value.

Performance management. Information linking staff to outputs and outcomes can help determine the extent to which they are meeting performance goals. In addition, M&E systems can identify specific areas of strength to help with organization-wide allocation of effort, and can help determine organization-wide capacity to take on additional projects. Outside audiences also rely on M&E information on impacts to make performance assessments related to new or continued funding.

External reporting. M&E can address reporting requirements from external stakeholders such as funders or regulatory or accreditation bodies.

Portfolio M&E uses

Public access and external coordination. For the public and potential community partners to access our public engagement activities and resources, they need to know what they are. Centralized information systems can increase access by making it easy for the public to find–in one place–the resources to meet their needs.

Internal coordination. Deliberate design and support for internal information sharing on engagement programs is especially important for organizations with multiple units that might be engaging with the same issues or audiences. Organizations with particularly distributed (as opposed to centralized), diverse, and entrepreneurial departments and public engagement programs may have the most to gain here.

Strategic planning. Information systems can contribute to high-level tracking of progress towards strategic goals and may help identify effective initiatives to support those goals.

Allocation. Some institutions may be interested in supporting public engagement by using performance data on activities to allocate funding support.

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How M&E can help–Uses of measurement and evaluation systems

Uses of measurement and evaluation

Program evaluation and portfolio M&E uses

Portfolio M&E uses

Further reading on integrating measurement, evaluation, and performance management