Category: Development Cooperation
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Scale Is Not Reach
One of the lessons I have taken from working in digital learning for international development is that reach and scale are not the same thing. We often report the number of learners reached, courses completed, institutions involved or countries served and use those figures as evidence that something has scaled.…
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Surfacing Value: What Project Evidence Can Tell Us Beyond the Indicators
Development projects often generate significant evidence about their value, which can be overlooked in traditional reporting focused on predefined indicators. Agility in programming requires informed judgement and adaptation to context. Effective project specification and documentation allow for a deeper understanding of value creation through learning, decision-making, and stakeholder experiences, highlighting…
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What Are You Really Hiring an Evaluation Consultant to Do?
Most organisations know why they commission an evaluation. They want to understand whether a strategy, programme or investment has achieved its intended objectives, what has worked well, what has not, and what should happen next. Yet, despite commissioning evaluations regularly, many executives have only a vague understanding of what they…
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MEAL Isn’t New – To Me…
The author reflects on their experience completing the MEAL Essentials Certificate, noting that while it presents familiar concepts in Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning, it merely formalises established practices rather than introducing new ideas. MEAL aims to create discipline within systems where data collection and action are often disconnected, highlighting…
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Why some KIIs just fail
A Key Informant Interview (KII) is a structured approach to understanding system functionalities by eliciting evidence rather than opinions. Effective questions focus on observed realities and specific instances. By exploring constraints and variations in experience, insights emerge. A single interview is insufficient; triangulating evidence from multiple sources enhances understanding and…
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The Conditions Under Which OKRs Actually Work
Organizations increasingly adopt Objectives and Key Results (OKR) without the necessary understanding to utilize them effectively. The framework, originally a tool for disciplined execution, requires clarity of outcomes and proper measurement. When applied in complex environments lacking this foundation, OKRs become meaningless, creating an illusion of progress without genuine understanding.