Transparency & Immediacy: Best-practice Agency Evaluation Series Part 7

Agency Evaluation Issues

A common frustration among participants in relationship evaluation programs is that the processes are opaque and that outcomes along the way are not immediately available. As a result, confidence in the program is undermined. And if participants in the program lack confidence in it, the effectiveness and the value of the program will be undermined.

Be Transparent

Best practice relationship evaluation programs are characterized by transparency and immediacy at all stages:-

• When the scorecard or questionnaire is developed and prioritized, the outcomes are available immediately so that the stakeholders can keep revising until they are completely happy with the result;

• The prioritized scorecard and objectives are visible to participants in the program at all times;

• Whether the scoring or assessing is done individually of collaboratively, the outcome is available immediately so that assessors can revise their inputs if required;

• The program should constitute a transparent “audit” of the relationship and be available for reference.

A further benefit of transparency and immediacy is that it encourages participation. People are more likely to contribute if they see immediately the result of their efforts.