Resource Center for Nonprofits

Evaluation & Learning

What does success look like for your organization? How do you know the work you do is having an impact? Does your organizational culture support evaluating the difference your nonprofit is making? Below are a number of resources to help your organization engage in evaluation and learning in the spirit of continuous improvement and greater impact.

National Council of Nonprofits – Evaluation and Measurement of Outcomes

Whether your nonprofit engages in formal “evaluation,” monitors progress towards specific goals, or uses feedback loops to learn what’s working and what’s not, each of these activities is a type of “performance measurement.” What makes the most sense for your nonprofit?

Here are some resources to help your organization along an intentional path that we hope will lead to the most effective delivery of your nonprofit’s programs and services, and advancement of its mission.

IssueLab by Candid – Measure Results

Need practical “how-to” info that aims to help you build your evaluation capacity? This collection includes suggested readings from our friends at BetterEvaluation, the Center for Evaluation Innovation, the Center for Effective Philanthropy, and Grantmakers for Effective Organizations as well as hand-picked content by IssueLab.

Basic Guide to Program Evaluation (Including Outcomes Evaluation)

This document provides guidance toward planning and implementing an evaluation process for for-profit or nonprofit programs — there are many kinds of evaluations that can be applied to programs, for example, goals-based, process-based and outcomes-based.

Kellogg Foundation – The Step-by-Step Guide to Evaluation, How to Become Savvy Evaluation Consumers

This handbook provides a framework for thinking about evaluation as a relevant and useful program tool. It was written primarily for project directors who have direct responsibility for the ongoing evaluation of projects. The guide is available here.

My Healthy Organization helps your organization take stock of your work, structure and culture, and decide what you want to strengthen for the future. Specifically designed for organizations committed to developing community leadership and making change.