• Come to an agreement on the scope of work that is needed. Before any evaluation work begins, you and the evaluator should be in agreement on the specific tasks and subtasks that will be performed by the evaluator. A list of tasks and subtasks should be prepared, including any deliverables (e.g., reports, meeting presentations, or other products) that are associated with each task. Use the drafted evaluation plan that your evaluator submitted during the hiring process as the basis for this discussion. The listed tasks and deliverables can be changed as time goes on, but the evaluator should not work on activities outside the established scope of work without your agreement.

• Establish a timeline for reports and other products. Due dates should be established for each deliverable listed in the scope of work. Consider requiring drafts of reports and other important products as deliverables so that changes can be made in those deliverables before they are submitted in final form. Time should be built into the deliverable schedule to allow you and your staff to review and comment on draft products and for the evaluator to revise the drafts for final submission. It is helpful to include in the schedule due dates for your comments on draft products. Those dates will help to keep things on schedule. Monitoring the evaluator’s adherence to the schedule is part of assessing their performance.
  
  
• Write a contract. An important part of managing an evaluator is preparing a contract for the evaluation work. Important content that should be included in the contract includes the following:
  
  
  • Scope of work. The contract should include the list of evaluation tasks that will be performed, all evaluation deliverables, and due dates for the completion of tasks and the submission of deliverables.
    
    
  • Evaluation personnel and task responsibilities. It is important to identify who will do the work. Evaluations often involve a team in which there is a senior evaluator who heads the team and junior staff who do much of the work. Delegation of responsibilities is to be expected. However, you should know which tasks the head evaluator will perform and which tasks will be carried out by assistants. The contract should also specify any evaluation tasks that will be the responsibility of your program staff.
    
    
  • Ownership of data. The contract should specify who owns the information and data collected by the evaluator and who has the publication rights. The program or its parent agency usually owns this information. Authorized agency staff should always clear release of information to outside parties. This includes the publication of data in professional papers and journal articles.
    
    
  • Expected contacts with the program. The evaluator needs to keep the program staff informed about the status of the evaluation. The contract should specify any required progress reports, meetings with the program staff, and attendance at other meetings.

Other tips include the following:

• Keep the relationship professional. Like most working relationships, it is important to maintain a relationship that is focused on tasks and performance.
  
  
• Meet regularly. Regular face-to-face interaction provides you with the opportunity to monitor the progress of each task in the scope of work. During these meetings, ask the evaluator to brief you on the status of each task and identify any problems that have been encountered. Use these meetings to make any changes formally to the evaluation design. Monthly meetings with the evaluator are not too much to expect. If regular in-person meetings are not possible, regular conference calls can suffice.
  
  
• Ask questions. Anytime you are unsure about the work that is being done, ask questions. Continue to ask questions until you understand what is going on. Don’t be afraid to ask for explanations of how work activities relate to the tasks in the scope of work.
  
  
• Require progress reports. Brief monthly or quarterly progress reports are helpful. These reports should cover at least three areas: (1) activities that were undertaken during the reporting period, (2) any problems or issues that surfaced and how they were addressed, and (3) activities that are expected to be carried out during the next reporting period. It is important that progress reports be kept brief and simple.
  
  
• Adhere to the schedule of deliverables. Make sure that all reports and other products are delivered according to schedule. Don’t be afraid to ask in advance if the next scheduled deliverable will be on time. Delays in the delivery of one product may have a ripple effect on the delivery of subsequent products. If the delivery schedule is too tight or unrealistic, modify the schedule to avoid future problems.
  
  
• Adhere to the agreed upon payment schedule. Evaluation consultants can be paid in a variety of ways. This is something you need to negotiate with your consultant before a contract is signed. Small consulting contracts are sometimes paid in one lump sum at the end of a contract or when the final evaluation report is submitted. Larger contracts are often paid in monthly installments upon the consultant’s submission of a detailed time log.

Perhaps one of the most important things to remember is to deal with issues or concerns early, as they arise. Trust your instincts—don’t sweep problems under the rug or ignore nagging worries just because you don’t know all the subtleties of evaluation design. Treat your evaluator as you would any other staff member. Remember, he or she is not on board to judge you or your program, but to work with you to improve the quality of the services you provide.

Please proceed to Part 2: Minimizing Costs.

References

Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (n.d.). How to find and work with an evaluator. Evaluation Basics PreventionDSS 3.0. Rockville, MD: U.S.