“The Center for Evaluation (CEval) of Saarland University, Germany, is a globally active research institute for applied social science in the field of evaluation and member of the DeGEval (German Evaluation Society). On this occasion, we organize an international conference about “The Future of Evaluation in Modern Societies” on 14th and 15th June 2012 in Saarbruecken, Germany.

The objective of this event is to discuss the role of evaluation in societies comprehensively and on an international comparison for bringing different discussion strands together into a joint debate. For keynote speeches and lectures, we could already win numerous renowned scientists from the USA, Latin America, Africa and Europe.

Please find the detailed program and registration form on our homepage: http://futureofevaluation.ceval.de

You also find a review about our recent book “A Practioner Handbook on Evaluation” which will appeal to evaluation practitioners, policy-makers who conduct evaluations in their daily work, students training in applied research and organizations which are implementing projects and programs that could be the subject of an evaluation.

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Maria Albrecht,  M.A., Center for Evaluation (CEval), Saarland University, P.O. Box 15 11 50, 66041 Saarbrücken – Germany, Fon: +49 (0)681 302-3561, Fax: +49 (0)681 302-3899, www.ceval.de

16 March 2012
The Macdonald Hotel, Birmingham

[from UKES website] UKES conferences address leading issues of the day in programme and policy evaluation. The 2012 Annual Conference will address the current drive towards evaluation focused on results – frequently linked to ‘Payment by Results’ and what, in international development and elsewhere, is familiar as ‘Results-Based Management’.

Evaluators and those who commission evaluation who advocate a focus on results reflect a legitimate concern with the productivity and efficiency of programmes and the capacity of interventions to secure gains and improvements in practice and provision. They point out that programmes should be held to account to accomplish what they were designed to do and paid for, often out of public funds. A primary focus on results seeks to emphasise main effects and outcomes that have been valued and agreed. In times of austerity and unusually scarce resources, proponents of a strong focus on results argue that emphasising value for money is socially responsible.

Others argue that an over-emphasis on measuring a programme’s results neglects important questions of how results are generated in a context, whether results capture the real quality and accomplishments of a programme, and how those results may reflect the values and ambitions of all programme stakeholders. They remind us of secondary effects and ‘unintended beneficiaries’ of programmes that may not be readily captured by results. Some also raise questions about the source of criteria over what counts as a worthwhile result given that not all programme achievements can be measured, and stakeholders may differ over a programme’s objectives. 

Against this background conference participants are invited to contribute their own perspectives on the dominant issues they consider relevant to the theory and practice of evaluation in the public interest. We anticipate a lively and informative debate to stimulate professional learning and to contribute to the improvement of evaluation practice and commissioning.

Potential contributors are invited to propose discussions, seminar presentations, lectures or poster sessions which explore issues around this theme. Those issues may fall within one of the following categories – though you are invited to propose your own theme:?

• How do we define a valid ‘result’ and whose results get counted?
• How do we best measure a result – including taking account of counterfactuals?
• How do we understand where results came from, what significance they have and whether they can be replicated – i.e. what is the relation between a result and context?
• Where do benchmarks come from to measure results achievement?
• If a result is, say, a 4% improvement – how do we know whether that is a lot or a little under the circumstances?
• How do we represent the circumstances and mechanisms that give rise to a result?
• How do we account for programme accomplishments that are not represented in results?
• Is results-measurement a robust foundation for replication/extension of a programme?

A formal call for papers and proposals for sessions will be circulated shortly.  The conference will be preceded on 15 March 2012 with a choice of training workshops on specialist topics.

Date: 17-18 October 2011
Venue: ANU, Canberra, Australia

Concept Note, Chris Roche & Linda Kelly, 4 August 2011

The Developmental Leadership Program (DLP)[1] addresses an important gap in international thinking and policy about the critical role played by leaders, elites and coalitions in the politics of development. At the core of DLP thinking is the proposition that political processes shape developmental outcomes at all levels and in all aspects of society: at national and sub-national levels and in all sectors and issue areas.

Initial findings of the DLP research program confirm that development is a political process and that leadership and agency matter. This is of course not new, but the DLP research provides important insights into how, in particular, leadership, elites and formal and informal coalitions can play a particularly important and under-recognized role in institutional formation (or establishing the ‘rules of the game’), policy reform and development processes[2].

International aid therefore needs to engage effectively with political processes. It needs to be flexible and be able to respond when opportunities open up. It needs to avoid the danger of bolstering harmful political settlements.

Furthermore Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) mechanisms need to be improved and made compatible with flexible programming and recognize the importance of ‘process’ as well as outcomes. Donors should invest in a range of monitoring and evaluation techniques and approaches which are more aligned with the kinds of non-linear and unpredictable processes which characterise the kinds of political processes which drive positive developmental outcomes. This is important because it can be argued that, at best, current approaches are simply not appropriate to monitor the kinds of processes DLP research indicates are important; or, at worst, they offer few incentives to international assistance agencies to support the processes that actually lead to developmental outcomes

At the same time aid donors are increasingly under pressure to adopt results-based management processes and value for money assessments. There is also growing demand for more rigorous monitoring and evaluation, and greater transparency and public accountability[3].

In the light of these issues DLP will host a seminar on the topic of ‘Monitoring and Evaluation as if Politics Matters’.

The purpose of this event is to explore the strengths and weaknesses of current approaches to M&E, and suggest what ‘intelligent mixes’ of different approaches, methods and innovations might be tested by DLP in order to better track and understand how international assistance can best support the emergence and success of developmental leaderships, elites and coalitions.

In particular the workshop will explore what effective mix of different approaches would be required to:

• Capture changes in agency, leadership, elite formation, and coalitions, i.e. the processes that generate developmental leadership
• Evaluate the developmental outcomes (positive and negative) including in particular institutional and policy reform, associated with these changes
• Assess the contribution of international agencies and aid to these processes
• Address the challenges and opportunities that emerge from the results-based, ‘value for money’, and aid-and-development effectiveness agendas which are prominent concerns in donor thinking and policies at present.

The aim of the workshop will be to produce:

• A limited mixture of ‘testable’ methods, which would be trialled by DLP and its partners over the coming period; and
• Some guidance to the international development community about the value of different evaluative approaches for different development processes in the form of a workshop report.

It is our belief that no single method will be suitable to measure the effectiveness of this work.  We will need a range and mix of approaches that draws from the best quantitative, qualitative and participatory approaches, as well as innovations being generated through social network analysis and social media.

We believe that we therefore need a mix of expertise covering a range of M&E approaches.  The workshop will therefore include experts and researchers with different approaches to Monitoring and Evaluation and political analysis, staff responsible for managing quality and M&E processes in DLP partners, including AusAID, and development practitioners working on these issues from developing countries. It would involve between 15 and 20 people.

We envisage a maximum of 4/5 speakers with an appropriate balance between the following areas.

• Theories of Change and Complexity analysis
• Gendered M&E
• Social Network Analysis and M&E of Governance questions
• Quantitative analysis, Experimental and Randomised Control Trials
• Citizen Voice and crowd-sourcing options to generate feedback
• Specialists in assessing institutional and organizational change
• Specialists with expertise in different approaches to analyzing ‘Value for Money’ questions
  • Participatory M&E and Impact Assessment

Currently the confirmed speakers are:

• Patricia Rogers, Professor in Public Sector Evaluation and leader of the research program in Evidence Based Policy and Practice in the Sustainable Health and Well-Being Research Institute at RMIT, Melbourne (www.rmit.edu.au/rd/sustainablehealthandwellbeing) and author of ‘Purposeful Program Theory’ with Sue Funnell. Patricia is also a key player in the Impact Evaluation for Development initiative. ,
• Rosalind Eyben, Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex and member of the Participation, Power and Social Change team (http://www.ids.ac.uk/index.cfm?objectid=BB000CE0-5056-8171-7B0079D6144E8C25) an ex Chief Social Development Advisor at DFID. Rosalind is the instigator of the Big Push Forward initiative (http://bigpushforward.wordpress.com/),
• Irene Guijt is an international expert in the application of learning-oriented knowledge processes in international development (http://www.cognitive-edge.com/directoryrecord.php?ID=4621).  She has provided research, advisory, and training services on social and organizational learning, in particular being known for her work on innovative thinking on monitoring, evaluation and learning, most recently engaged in experimenting with ‘SenseMaker’ (http://www.globalgiving.org/stories/))
  • Shawn Powers,  Policy Manager at the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab at MIT a research network specializing in randomized evaluations of social programs (http://www.povertyactionlab.org/powers)
  • Dr. Maria Melody Garcia is a researcher at the German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE) working on impact evaluation . She is the author of Micro-Methods in Evaluating Governance Interventions, a recent overview of  impact evaluation methodologies currently used in the field of governance. focusing specifically on experimental and quasi-experimental designs see http://www.bmz.de/en/zentrales_downloadarchiv/erfolg/BMZ_WP_Micro.pdf
  • Esme Gaussen, is an independent monitoring, evaluation and value for money specialist currently based in South Africa.  She has previously worked for the UK National Audit Office on value for money assessments of DFID-supported programmes, and developed M+E tools for the NAO’s International Technical Cooperation Programme.

The format of the workshop will involve an introduction to DLP’s research and findings by Adrian Leftwich, and a short input on the challenges raised by DLP’s partners in the first M&E workshop (by Chris Roche or Linda Kelly). We are then proposing having pairs of experts responding to these challenges suggesting how they might be addressed by DLP, from different perspectives. Speakers would be asked to prepare presnetations in advance. This would be interspersed with Questions and Answers and discussion.

This would lead on to more workshop type sessions exploring testable approaches and methods. A final session might include sharing these findings with a broader range of development practitioners and experts in Canberra.

We envisage a workshop report, that will be part of the DLP research papers series, outlining an overall approach for the M&E of ‘working politically’ as described by DLP.

Chris Roche & Linda Kelly on behalf of the Developmental Leadership Program, 31 August 2011 (they are interested to hear about any research, experience or ideas that may be relevant to the topic)

Date: 3-5 October 2011
Venue: Oslo, Norway 

ABOUT THE OSLO GOVERNANCE FORUM

The Oslo Governance Forum (OGF) is an initiative of the Oslo Governance Centre and the Democratic Governance Group of UNDP. The Forum will facilitate exchange of innovative experiences, knowledge and policy options among international development practitioners, academic institutions, government representatives and civil society from the global south.

The Oslo Governance Forum will take place from the 3-5 October 2011. The overarching focus is on governance assessments and their current and potential contribution to improving social accountability within developing countries. For the purposes of the OGF, social accountability has a wide meaning and relates to the mechanisms and instruments that are used by communities, groups and ordinary people to make governments and their agents, answerable and responsive in terms of the commitments that they have made. Governance assessments are an increasingly important tool for monitoring whether governments are failing or succeeding in terms of their commitments in legislation, government policies and international law.

To date, much of the focus of the development community on governance assessments, has been on the “supply side”, that is, improving the methodological aspects of an assessment and getting the right indicators. The OGF will focus on the “demand side”, examining, discussing and sharing experiences on how governance assessments are used by stakeholders as a basis for dialogue on governance deficits, as an instrument to monitor performance and as an input for revising and correcting policies. One of the key elements of democratic governance and accountability is empowerment of the people and the fostering of demand- and people driven accountability as opposed to accountability to external actors like donors.

The world is changing rapidly and never before has democratic governance and accountability been so visibly important on the global stage. The Arab Spring revolutions have shown that governments must take people’s calls for accountability and their rights to be governed democratically more seriously. These events have also added to the growing number of case studies that attest to the potential of social media and related technologies for mobilizing people for change.”

See the Forum home page for more information as well as the Concept Note for the Forum

Date: OCTOBER 1-5, 2012
Venue: HELSINKI, Finland

Conference website

EVALUATION IN THE NETWORKED SOCIETY: NEW CONCEPTS, NEW CHALLENGES, NEW SOLUTIONS

The Tenth Biennial Conference of the European Evaluation Society will be the international evaluation event of the year. It will be held in Helsinki, Finland during 3-5 October 2012 (pre-conference workshops 1- 2 October).

Evaluators are living in times of unprecedented challenge and opportunity. The networked information environment is inducing fundamental changes in culture, politics and society. Whereas the industrial society was reliant on centralised, hierarchical, high cost information systems, the networked society is characterised by decentralised, voluntary and cheap information exchange.

The advent of social networking without borders will have fundamental implications for evaluation agendas and methods. First, it will redefine the value and legitimacy of evaluation in global social accountability networks and accelerate the internationalisation of evaluation. Second, evaluation cultures, structures and processes will have to deal  with the limitless quantity, speed and accessibility of information generated by new technologies, e.g. drawing useful meaning from huge data bases, assessing the validity of an exploding number of rating systems, league tables, etc. in ways consistent with democratic values of freedom of expression and protection of privacy.

The new information technologies offer new ways of making authority responsible and accountable as well as bringing real time citizen involvement and reliable information to bear on public policy making. What are the implications of an information economy that allows instant connectivity to thousands of program beneficiaries suddenly able to make their voices heard? Will the spread of mobile telephony to the weakest and most vulnerable members of society and the rising power of social networks act as evaluative and recuperative mechanisms or will they merely aggravate social instability? What are the risks of network capture by single or special interest groups and cooptation of evaluation?

The rise of the evaluation discipline is inextricably linked to the values central to any democratic society. How will these values be protected in a context where weak links and increasing inequalities have created new fissures in society? How will evaluation independence be protected against the pressures of vested interests intent on retaining control over the commanding heights of the society?

To help explore these and other issues relevant to the prospects of evaluation in Europe and beyond the Conference will stimulate evaluators to share ideas, insights and opinions about a wide range of topics that will throw light on the future roles of evaluation in the networked society. The Conference will help draw evaluation lessons learnt in distinct sectors and regions of the world. It will also examine the potential of alternative and mixed evaluation methods in diverse contexts and probe the challenges of assessing public interest in complex adaptive systems and networks.

To these ends the Conference will offer participants a wide choice of vehicles for the transmission of evaluation experience and knowledge: keynote speeches, paper presentations, panel debates, posters, etc.  As in past years the EES Conference will aim at a pluralistic agenda that respects the legitimacy of different standpoints, illuminates diverse perspectives and promotes principled debate. The Conference will also provide an opportunity for evaluation networks to interact and improve the coherence of their activities.

We look forward to welcoming you in Helsinki. It is one of the world leaders in modern design and it provides Europe with a world class high tech platform. It also boasts a 450 year history and lays claim to being the warmest, friendliest, most “laid back” city of Northern Europe. Its nearby archipelago of islands offers an ideal environment for sea cruises and its neighboring old growth forests provide an idyllic setting for restful nature walks. We promise you an enjoyable as well as a professionally rewarding time!!

Ian Davies, President, European Evaluation Society
Maria Bustelo, Vice President and President Elect, European Evaluation Society

Date: 18 October 2011
Venue: New Delhi, India

[found courtesy of Sarah Earl]

“Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is ubiquitous in every aspect of our lives. Gradually ICT is acquiring a key role in monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of development projects by reinforcing the efficacy of data management and processing processes. As ICT is a whole new world for many professionals in the development sector, it becomes important to seek synergies from leading development actors and practitioners for perspective building, dissemination of knowledge and furthering the use of ICT in monitoring, evaluation and information system. How ICT influences on the collective activities and interest of the society in general has become an ineluctable question which could be well answered through the monitoring and evaluation process.”

“In this context a conference on ICT for monitoring and evaluation is being organized by Sambodhi Research & Communications on October 18, 2011 in New Delhi. The theme of the conference is “ICT for Monitoring, Evaluation, and Information System: Exploring New Frontiers.”

To participate in the conference click the following to download

For more information on the conference
Contact : Dr. Mary/Ms. Padmavati
Email : contact@sambodhi.co.in
Tel : 011             47593300-99

Date: 29 August – 2 September (workshops on 29-30th)
Venue: Hilton, Sydney, NSW, Australia

View the Conference website here

View the detailed outline of the program and please click here to view the detailed Pre Conference Workshop Program. Please note the Conference Program is subject to change.

Read more about the Keynote Speakers, their presentations and Conference main streams and ‘hot topics’.

Evaluation and influence

Evaluation claims to influence public policy, professional practice and the management of organisations. What is the nature and extent of this influence? How can evaluations be made more influential?  And conversely, in a rapidly changing world, what are the main influences on evaluation? To what extent is evaluation responding by taking on new approaches and technologies?

With the focus on influence, the conference builds upon the two previous conferences with their themes of evidence (Canberra 2009) and reflections on evaluation (Wellington 2010).

The conference will focus on three sub-themes:

The influence of evaluation on society

How much and in what ways does evaluation impact upon policy, practice and organisations? Where and in what circumstances does it have the most impact, and why? What are other important sources of influence, and how do they compare with evaluation?

Making an evaluation more influential

How can an evaluation be designed and conducted to increase its use and influence?  What are the most persuasive ways of communicating the results of an evaluation?What role can evaluators play in implementing evaluation results? What are the lessons for evaluation from theories of influence and diffusion?

Influences shaping evaluation

How is evaluation changing in response to emerging social, economic and political issues, to increasing complexity and uncertainty, and to new approaches and technologies? What are the important influences on evaluation, and how are they shaping evaluation?

The conference can explore its theme in streams around fields such as education and research, health, human services, justice, international development, Indigenous peoples, natural resource management and the economy. We also expect a stream on design and methodology.

Date: 12-14 September 2011
Venue: Johannesburg, South Africa

UNDP Evaluation Office and the Public Service Commission (PSC) of South Africa are co-hosting the second International Conference on National Evaluation Capacities. See the official website here.

This is a follow up conference to the 2009 International Conference on National Evaluation Capacities held in Casablanca, Morocco, which was organized by the UNDP Evaluation Office in partnership with the Moroccan National Observatory for Human Development.

Objectives

Mr. Indran A. Naidoo, Deputy Director General, Monitoring and Evaluation
Office of the Public Service Commission, South Africa

Ms. Azusa Kubota, Evaluation Specialist, UNDP Evaluation Office

Follow in Twitter: @NEC_2011 for the latest information on the International Conference on National Evaluation Capacities – 12-14 September 2011.

Date: 3-5 October 2012
Venue: Helsinki, Finland

EVALUATION IN THE NETWORKED SOCIETY: NEW CONCEPTS, NEW CHALLENGES, NEW SOLUTIONS

The Tenth Biennial Conference of the European Evaluation Society will be the international evaluation event of the year. It will be held in Helsinki, Finland during 3-5 October 2012 (pre-conference workshops 1- 2 October). Mark your calendars!!

Evaluators are living in times of unprecedented challenge and opportunity. The networked information environment is inducing fundamental changes in culture, politics and society. Whereas the industrial society was reliant on centralised, hierarchical, high cost information systems, the networked society is characterised by decentralised, voluntary and cheap information exchange.

The advent of social networking without borders will have fundamental implications for evaluation agendas and methods. First, it will redefine the value and legitimacy of evaluation in global social accountability networks and accelerate the internationalisation of evaluation. Second, evaluation cultures, structures and processes will have to deal  with the limitless quantity, speed and accessibility of information generated by new technologies, e.g. drawing useful meaning from huge data bases, assessing the validity of an exploding number of rating systems, league tables, etc. in ways consistent with democratic values of freedom of expression and protection of privacy.

The new information technologies offer new ways of making authority responsible and accountable as well as bringing real time citizen involvement and reliable information to bear on public policy making. What are the implications of an information economy that allows instant connectivity to thousands of program beneficiaries suddenly able to make their voices heard? Will the spread of mobile telephony to the weakest and most vulnerable members of society and the rising power of social networks act as evaluative and recuperative mechanisms or will they merely aggravate social instability? What are the risks of network capture by single or special interest groups and cooptation of evaluation?

The rise of the evaluation discipline is inextricably linked to the values central to any democratic society. How will these values be protected in a context where weak links and increasing inequalities have created new fissures in society? How will evaluation independence be protected against the pressures of vested interests intent on retaining control over the commanding heights of the society?

To help explore these and other issues relevant to the prospects of evaluation in Europe and beyond the Conference will stimulate evaluators to share ideas, insights and opinions about a wide range of topics that will throw light on the future roles of evaluation in the networked society. The Conference will help draw evaluation lessons learnt in distinct sectors and regions of the world. It will also examine the potential of alternative and mixed evaluation methods in diverse contexts and probe the challenges of assessing public interest in complex adaptive systems and networks.

To these ends the Conference will offer participants a wide choice of vehicles for the transmission of evaluation experience and knowledge: keynote speeches, paper presentations, panel debates, posters, etc.  As in past years the EES Conference will aim at a pluralistic agenda that respects the legitimacy of different standpoints, illuminates diverse perspectives and promotes principled debate. The Conference will also provide an opportunity for evaluation networks to interact and improve the coherence of their activities.

We look forward to welcoming you in Helsinki. It is one of the world leaders in modern design and it provides Europe with a a world class high tech platform. It also boasts a 450 year history and lays claim to being the warmest, friendliest, most “laid back” city of Northern Europe. Its nearby archipelago of islands offers an ideal environment for sea cruises and its neighboring old growth forests provide an idyllic setting for restful nature walks. We promise you an enjoyable as well as a professionally rewarding time!!

Ian Davies, President, European Evaluation Society
Maria Bustelo, Vice President and President Elect, European Evaluation Society

www.europeanevaluation.org 

Date: 8-9 June
Venue: Colombo, Sri Lanka
The Sri Lanka Evaluation Association (SLEvA) will hold the SLEvA 2011 International Conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka on 8-9 June. The conference will be preceded by pre conference professional development workshops conducted by leading professionals in the field as well as professionals working to build the evaluation field in South Asia such as the Community of Evaluators, members of the Consortium of Academic Institutions for Teaching Evaluation in South Asia TESA and the International Organisation for Collaboration in Evaluation.

The conference is expected to bring together around 150 professionals in evaluation, academics and members of regional and global evaluation associations. The conference will be of interest to professionals and will provide an opportunity for sharing knowledge and ideas with professionals and practitioners in evaluation and to learn of initiatives in South Asia.

The overall theme of the conference will be ‘Evaluation for Policy and Action’ with the following as subthemes.

• Evaluation for influencing policy and policy evaluation
• Evaluation for supporting development programmes
• Evaluation in disaster reduction and management
• Evaluating networks and partnerships
• Building the evaluation field
• Evaluation methodologies and approaches
• Other evaluation issues

The conference website is at www.sleva.lk

SLEvA invites paper abstracts, proposals for panel discussions, exhibits and displays, net working events and welcome your ideas for sharing information and learning