How can you overcome resistance to program evaluation among staff and volunteers?

1 Understand the sources of resistance

To understand and overcome resistance to program evaluation, it is important to listen to your staff and volunteers and identify the sources of resistance. These can include a negative perception of program evaluation, lack of knowledge or skills, feeling of overload or stress, sense of ownership or attachment, and distrust of the process. Common sources of resistance can be expressed through avoidance, denial, defensiveness, or hostility. By understanding the sources of resistance, you can tailor your communication and engagement strategies to address them and ensure that program evaluation is seen as a valuable exercise that values their work and experience.

2 Communicate the benefits of program evaluation

The second step to overcoming resistance to program evaluation is to communicate the benefits of program evaluation for your staff, volunteers, and the organization as a whole. Program evaluation is not just a requirement or compliance issue, but an opportunity to learn, improve, and celebrate achievements. It can help measure impact and outcomes, identify strengths and weaknesses, adapt to changing needs and contexts, recognize and reward staff and volunteers for their contributions, and create a culture of learning and improvement that fosters collaboration and growth. By communicating the benefits of program evaluation, you can motivate your team to participate in the program evaluation activities.

3 Involve your staff and volunteers in program evaluation

The third step to overcoming resistance to program evaluation is to involve your staff and volunteers in the process, from planning to implementation to dissemination. Involvement means giving them a voice and a choice, while also empowering them to take ownership and responsibility for the outcomes. To do this, ask them for input on design, questions, methods, and indicators; train them on the skills and tools they need; assign roles and tasks that match their abilities; provide updates on progress; and acknowledge their participation. By involving your staff and volunteers in program evaluation, you can increase their engagement, commitment, and satisfaction.

4 Share and use the program evaluation results

To overcome resistance to program evaluation, the fourth step is sharing and using the program evaluation results in a transparent, timely, and meaningful way. This means making the results accessible and understandable to staff, volunteers, and other stakeholders while incorporating them into decision-making and action-planning processes. To do this, you can create and disseminate clear and concise reports or infographics that highlight key findings, recommendations, and implications of the program evaluation. Additionally, presentations, workshops, or discussions should be organized and facilitated to allow staff, volunteers, and other stakeholders to review and respond to the program evaluation results. It's also important to celebrate successes, acknowledge challenges, implement changes based on the program evaluation results, monitor their impact and effectiveness, and follow up with an evaluation. By taking these steps you can demonstrate the value of program evaluation for your organization.