How Can We Help Out Grantees Strengthen Their Capacity for Evaluation?

There is a widespread and growing recognition in the nonprofit sector about the importance of evaluation--not only for measuring impact, but also for improving programs and better serving communities. While grantmakers generally see evaluation as necessary, most are not yet investing enough resources in this area. In 2014, nearly three quarters of nonprofits reported that their funders "rarely or never" fund impact measurement costs. This means that many nonprofits face an unfunded mandate to provide data that they don't have the time or resources to produce. 

 So how can we put grantees in a better position to evaluate their work? One strategy is to fund the evaluation of specific programs. Another is to help grantees incorporate evaluation and evaluative thinking into their basic organizational DNA. This kind of capacity building can help organizations continuously ask fruitful questions; collect, store and analyze relevant data; and develop the staffing, processes--and culture--that fosters a routine use of data to inform decisions. 

 In their newly released Smarter Grantmaking Playbook, GEO explains how to build a comprehensive plan for improving your organization's practices in one or more of the following areas: strengthening relationships with grantees, supporting nonprofit resilience, learning for improvement and collaboration. 

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