Building Success Together: Questions for PIs and Evaluators

Hello! I’m Valerie Marshall, a senior research associate at EvaluATE. Over the last year, I have worked with evaluators and principal investigators (PIs) across six ATE projects enrolled in a research study with EvaluATE to learn more about how they use evaluation. PIs and evaluators repeatedly stressed the importance of having a good relationship with their evaluator, which often means open, clear communication with aligned expectations.

Below is a series of reflection questions for PIs and project teams on topics I’ve identified through my work with evaluators and PIs to help ensure alignment. Evaluators can also use these questions to identify areas that are unclear or where additional information for their PI may be helpful. These questions can be asked at any point during the evaluation; if you don’t know, it’s never too late to ask!

Role clarity and responsibility. These questions help ensure that everyone is on the same page about their scope of work and resources to support it, so there’s no confusion about who does what and why.

• Do I understand my evaluator’s role and what they do?
• What kinds of questions or issues are appropriate to bring to my evaluator versus my NSF program officer versus my institutional grants or research office?
• Within my institution, what is the process for managing and using grant funds, and who is my contact?

Communication. These questions help develop communication norms that can be revisited throughout the project as needs or circumstances change, reducing confusion and facilitating timely responses.

• When and how does the meeting cadence with my evaluator need to change? Are my evaluator and I on the same page about this?
• When and how should my evaluator follow up with me on an email or other correspondence that I haven’t answered yet? What is my preferred method of follow-up?
• How should I provide project updates to my evaluator?

 Evaluation reporting. These questions can help align evaluators’ and PIs’ expectations and informational needs to ensure that evaluation findings are useful.

• How long after data is collected can I expect to see evaluation results from my evaluator? Do I need a report for each event, or does it depend on who I am sharing the results with?
• What kinds of reports do I need or want from my evaluator? For example, annual evaluation reports, evaluation reports on specific project events that I can share with others (e.g., industry partners, faculty), or summary reports by academic semester?
• Would it be more helpful to me to have reports structured around the project’s goals and objectives, activities, or evaluation questions?
• Can I expect project recommendations in evaluation reports?

Project-related. These questions help align expectations about what matters and why, in order to get the most out of an evaluation.

• How will the things that I value most about this project be captured by the evaluation?
• How can my evaluator work with me to incorporate evaluation feedback and findings into implementing and sustaining my project?
• Are my evaluator and I on the same page about what “success” means for this project?

Have tips and suggestions not included here? Please let us know! Email us at info@evalu-ate.org.

Thank you to Jen, Richard, Amanda, Jay, Jeff, Aaron, Nancy, Bob, Janet, Darcie, Kate, and Merdikae for providing the inspiration and ideas for this blog!