A Guide to Measuring Advocacy and Policy

This guide provides some perspective on where the field of philanthropy has been with regard to evaluation of advocacy and policy and also acknowledges the unique issues and challenges associated with measuring these efforts. In addition, this guide serves as an invitation to grantmakers to engage in and expand thinking about evaluation as it relates to advocacy and policy efforts. As seriously as many grantmakers take their investments in this area, foundations should also take seriously the need to advance evaluation of advocacy and policy work. Grantmakers are invited to engage in the discussion about how best to approach measurement in this area, what can be learned from evaluation efforts and how learnings might be applied. With broad engagement in this discussion, we can identify language, agree on approaches, and ultimately accept and adopt standards of practice so that evaluation can be used strategically to strengthen advocacy and policy efforts. The overall purpose of this guide is twofold.

 To help grantmakers think about and talk about measurement of advocacy and policy, this guide puts forth a framework for naming outcomes associated with advocacy and policy work as well as directions for evaluation design. The framework is intended to provide a common way to identify and talk about outcomes, providing philanthropic and non-profit audiences an opportunity to react to, refine and adopt the outcome categories presented. In addition, grantmakers can consider some key directions for evaluation design that include a broad range of methodologies, intensities, audiences, timeframes and purposes. 

Download

aecf-aguidetomeasuringpolicyandadvocacy-2007.pdf
255.04 KB