Philanthropy Northwest Announces Webinar Series on Evaluation

Submitted by Steve on August 23, 2012

Philanthropy Northwest will host a four-session series of webinars this Fall to explore in depth issues of evaluation. The series, Embedding Evaluation Thinking & Practices into Your Strategy and Programs begins Wednesday, September 19, with the session Current Thinking and Practices in Evaluation.

Here is the series info.

Evaluation is about more than tracking results; it’s about learning from experience to improve your foundation’s impact. The Advanced Grantmaking series explores how to embed these practices into your foundation’s strategies, programs, and board and staff meetings. While it is possible to sign-up for individual sessions, the four-part series is designed in such a way that each session will build upon the one before. Each webinar includes: pre-reading to help participants prepare; interactive discussions and case studies during the session; and practical application opportunities afterwards.

All sessions will feature presenters from Organizational Research Services, a nationally recognized expert in outcome-based planning and evaluation, with deep experience working with foundations and nonprofits. View the detailed agenda and learn more about these great sessions.

Session 1: Current Thinking and Practices in Evaluation
September 19, 2012 10-11:30am (Pacific Time)
This session will describe new trends in evaluation thinking and practices which stress the usefulness of evaluation for strategy development and program improvement.

Session 2: Developing a Theory of Change
October 17, 2012 10-11:30am (Pacific Time)
This session will describe the process for identifying the theoretical underpinnings that underlie your foundation’s approach to philanthropy and will offer different tools for making this process accessible.

Session 3: Building Your Data Collection System
November 14, 2012 10-11:30am (Pacific Time)
This session will describe practical and right-sized options for your data collection system. A variety of options and practical tools will be shared.

Session 4: Communicating and Learning from Your Evaluation Results
December 12, 2012 10-11:30am (Pacific Time)
This session will dive into real-life examples of how evaluation can be communicated in ways that are useful to your organizational learning as well as accountability.