The program planning starts with the big picture strategic plan, which crates a framework for all agency programs.  Program managers, staff and clients are responsible for identifying program priorities, conducting evaluation, and using the evaluation to guide future work.

Planning & Evaluation Cycle

Effective planning sets up realistic program goals and a plan of action that has a greater chance of success.  Ongoing evaluation allows program staff and volunteers to make incremental improvements and adjustments in the program.  Program evaluation and updates, feedback from constituents, community mapping and needs assessment provide important input into ongoing plans.

Planning can be conducted in a number of ways.  Community based organizations often do not have the staff and volunteer time to engage in a lengthy, complex planning process – nor should they.  However, even small community-based groups can develop an effective planning process that allows them to involve stakeholders in providing feedback and shaping plans, setting goals and strategies that move the work forward in productive ways. In planning, you will want to include the following elements:

Program Updates.  How have programs met goals?  What have been the most important accomplishments according to both staff and constituents?  What have been the challenges? What outcomes has the program achieved, and how are they significant?

Funding Updates.  How has the budget performed, overall and by each program area. What are the important funding patterns?  Ratios of income to expense?  Did you receive funding expected?  Where were the surprises – good and bad.

Feedback from Constituents.  Identify and map your key constituent groups.  Develop some simple and cost effective ways to gather information and involve representatives from each group in planning.   You can provide surveys to customers and/or conduct focus groups.  Peer agency executives can provide feedback one-on-one or through group discussions.  You can gather information from other community stakeholders such as government officials and funders in much the same way as from agency executives.  Ask them about what they see as priority community needs?  How are the needs being met?  Where are services well integrated, and where are there gaps?  What feedback do they have about your agency’s services in terms of access, quality, cultural sensitivity, involvement of constituents, and impact?  What sort of image does your agency have with these stakeholders?  What recommendations do they have?

Staffing and Volunteers.  Evaluate staffing for programs and areas that are stretched.  What do staff recommend for improving the agency?  What can be done to provide the best possible working environment?  Do staff job descriptions need to change? Do volunteers and board members have job descriptions?  How are volunteer groups most effective? What recommendations do volunteers have for improving their own work and the work of the agency?

Once you have gathered information in these four areas, you can summarize your findings and make specific recommendations for the strategic plan – or plan update.  You may suggest modifying certain goal areas, adding goals, or removing goals.  The summary of your findings and the recommendations provide material for the new plan.

Planning Process – Steps

1. Gather information, analyze it and make recommendations for the plan (as outlined on page 9).
2. Bring people together to develop the plan or plan revisions that will shape the work in the future.
3. Many groups and agencies bring board members and staff together for an actual planning retreat.  Sometimes, staff meet to develop their recommendations to the board, and the board meets separately in a board retreat.  Other times, agency staff develop recommendations, and join with the board in the planning retreat.  Still other groups involve staff, board, and representatives from key stakeholder groups.
4. Share the plan goals with stakeholder groups to let them know how you are responding to their feedback and suggestions.
5. Implement the plan in each program area of the agency by supporting staff and volunteer strategies and activities that allow them to meet objectives.
6. Review accomplishments on a regular basis within program and operational areas and as an agency so that the planning and evaluation process becomes part of staff work for all goal areas.
7. Conduct an annual or biannual review in preparation for the next strategic plan.
8. Evaluation & Planning:  Tools to Respond to Challenges
9. The best way to make sure that evaluation is kept simple and easy for you and your staff is to remember a few basic principles that keep you focused on the very tangible benefits of program and organizational evaluation.

Evaluation tells you what is working well with programs and services —- and what needs improvement or change.   Evaluation provides you one of your best management tools.  Evaluation keeps your programs and your organization on track:  addressing community needs, meeting goals, and satisfying clients.  Evaluation helps you to plan more effectively – and keep the plan practical and on track.  Evaluation enables you to make a stronger case statement to funders.

Program Improvement Plans

1. Prioritize all the programs, so that you know which programs will be cut back or removed during budget cutbacks.  This is particularly crucial during the mid and late 1990s when so many programs will be cut at state and municipal levels.
2. Develop plans to strengthen and expand your best programs.  You should include strategies for improving quality of services as well as strategies for expanding revenues.
3. Develop plans to improve programs that are not the strongest, but which are still important to you.  Examine their strengths and weaknesses, and build a set of strategies that will allow you to make each of these programs more effective.
4. Develop plans to test and evaluate programs that are new, unproved or marginal.  Examine whether or not you should be spending your organizational time and energy on these programs.  See if these programs could be handled more effectively by another nonprofit, or if these programs are of real importance to enough community members.  Often, programs have a life-cycle, and it is perfectly appropriate to stop a program if it no longer meets a priority need.
5. Develop plans to phase out programs which no longer meet mission priorities, or are ineffective, or which are too costly to handle.

General Program Evaluation

At its simplest level, you will want evaluation to measure the following:

A.        Is the program meeting priority community needs, and how do we know?

If the program is addressing needs that are identified by the community as a priority, your program is relevant and well positioned for success.

B.        How well is the program meeting its goals?

Program goals should be clear and should be similar to goals of other, comparable programs that are used by your field as models.  Program objectives should be measurable and timeframed.

When you evaluate your program goals, if you find that your goals and standards are set based on “the best in the industry,” you will know that you have set excellent standards.  Then, if you meet and exceed those standards, your program will itself be a model, and will receive strong support.

C.        What sort of an impact does the program make?   What are the program outcomes?  What sort of impact does the program have in the community?

The best measure of a program lies in the outcomes – increased awareness, changed lives, improved health, reduction in teen pregnancy rates, etc.  The collective measure of outcomes over time is the impact in the community. Show outcomes for a program that the community considers essential, and you have long-term support.

At its fundamental level, program evaluation addresses these three areas.  Any evaluation that you conduct which answers the key issues addressed on this page will strengthen your program.

Taking Steps

To make it easy, begin simply, and make monthly and yearly progress as you work to: Show that your program is essential.

• Show overall impact, by program goals and program area;
• Measure program performance and relate to effective practices;
• Demonstrate outcomes and (over time) impact.