Week 3 Discussion 1

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Evaluating Results and Benefits – Week #3 Lecture 1

What do you think of when you think about an evaluation? Do you immediately think about what you are doing right or wrong and how you might improve? The evaluation process is essential because it allows one to determine what is working and what is not within the workplace while giving feedback for improvement. Evaluation may focus on an individual, a team, or department. Evaluation may also focus on a process. Regardless of what is being evaluated, it is important to consider what is going right, what may not be going right, and what can be done to improve the situation overall.

First and foremost, it is important to decide who will be conducting the evaluation. Some might immediately think that management should conduct the evaluations, however, that is not always the best route to take. Evaluations can be conducted by internal staff, external third-parties, those involved in the delivery of a service, by a peer, or even by the community. The proper evaluator should be chosen based on the need for the evaluation overall.  Once the evaluator has been decided upon, it is important to determine the right time to conduct the evaluation. In the instance of a project evaluation, it is important to allow enough time for the project to get underway before evaluating it. As you know, any new project or process needs a little time to get adjusted. However, it is important that you do not wait too long where an investment could be lost due to poor management. Taking the time to determine when an evaluation should occur is an important role for management to consider. Remember, when it comes to performance, timing is critical. By definition, a needs assessment is a systematic process that will determine and address the need for or the gaps present between the current condition and the desired condition. The discrepancy must be measured properly in order to determine the need (Moseley & Dessigner, 2009). The needs assessment is used in the planning process and can be used to improve many aspects of the organization including individuals, teams, and processes. The needs assessment is also a great tool to assist in identifying issues that are preventing workplace success. Organizations find the use of a needs assessment to be a common assessment tool within the workplace as it has a solid track record when it comes to organizational improvements. The needs assessment is a tool that is easy and affordable for any organization if conducted properly.  An impact evaluation is designed to provide feedback to help improve the design of a program or policy within the workplace. The impact evaluation looks at the well-being of those who are directly affected by a project. This might be an individual, a team, an investor, or even a community. Due to the difficult nature of assessing these individuals, a group must be developed that would mimic those at the receiving end of the project or service. By doing this, the participants can be monitored to determine their behaviors as a result of the product or service. This evaluation method provides an estimated observation of how well the product or service will work once launched. In addition, feedback can be obtained prior to the launch to ensure success overall (Moseley & Dessigner, 2009). A full-scope evaluation offers human performance technology professionals a choice of formative, summative, confirmative, and meta evaluation methods. The full-scope evaluation method is a diagnostic tool that assess the readiness of an organization while preparing to implement a project or plan into the workplace. The full-scope evaluation method is typically used in the pre-planning methods to determine what the goals might be and the challenges that could arise with the implementation of the project or process. The results that occur from the pre-planning evaluation will help to determine when further feedback will be necessary and how often adjustments may need to be made (Moseley & Dessigner, 2009). The Kirkpatrick Taxonomy Model is also a beneficial tool used in the evaluation process. There are four (4) levels to the evaluation model. Level 1 measures reaction and the degree to which participants react. Level 2 measures learning and the degree to which participants acquire knowledge, skills, attitude, and confidence. Level 3 measures behavior and the degree to which a participant will apply what they have learned. Level 4 measures the degree to which the targeted outcomes occur as a result of reinforcement (Moseley & Dessigner, 2009). This method typically measures training and is important as it looks directly at the employees and their ability to take from the training to apply to the workplace. Understanding the ability of your employees will provide you a deeper understanding of the success of your organization. The evaluation method that will be used will vary from organization to organization, as well as project to project. As a manager, understanding the various methods of evaluation will provide you with the ability to stay ahead of the competition. The understanding of these concepts will also help you to develop a stronger bond among your employees to ensure continued organizational success.  Resources: Mosele, J. & Dessinger, J. (2009). Handbook of Improving Performance in the Workplace. (Volume 3). Pfeiffer-Wiley

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