With the rising wave of new-age evaluation methods, it has become increasingly important to accurately gauge the quality and effectiveness of a business’s projects, programmes, and initiatives. While your internal teams do an excellent job at keeping the organisation alive, an external evaluation might just be the solution you were looking for if you’ve identified the need for a second set of eyes to gain an edge in the competitive global market. External Evaluator brings in the industry-specific expertise along with the capability to save valuable work hours.
To be precise, under the right conditions, an external evaluation holds the power to provide you with a blueprint of your organisation’s trajectory of long-term growth.
What is an External Evaluator?
An external evaluator is an independent professional or organisation hired to assess and analyse the effectiveness, efficiency, and impact of a project, programme, or initiative. They offer an impartial and unbiased perspective, expertise, and accountability, making them essential for transparent, credible, and efficient evaluations.
External evaluators bring a fresh, rational viewpoint to the evaluation process. This reduces potential biases and conflicts of interest. Their logical expertise fosters trust among stakeholders and ensures the credibility of the evaluation results. The system of external evaluation ultimately leads to more effective and impactful decision-making within organisations.
What is the Role of an External Evaluator?
An External Evaluator’s role is versatile and multifaceted. The core of it involves providing an unbiased assessment and leveraging specialised knowledge and experience to produce accurate and reliable results.
In essence, external evaluators serve as unbiased sources of evidence-based insights, aiding decision-makers and stakeholders in improving a programme’s effectiveness and efficiency.
What’s the Difference Between Internal and External Evaluators?
Internal Evaluators are an integral part of a project or programme undertaken by an organisation. They can contribute valuable insights stemming from their familiarity with the organisation’s strengths, weaknesses, partner networks, stakeholder dynamics, and individual nuances.
External evaluators, on the other hand, bring specialised knowledge and introduce an expert perspective on the project they oversee.
Internal evaluators are part of the organisation they assess, potentially influenced by internal biases and familiarity. External evaluators, in contrast, are independent professionals or entities hired for their impartiality and expertise. They bring a fresh, unbiased perspective and often possess broader experience in evaluating various organizations, enriching the evaluation process. This distinction in position and perspective is a fundamental difference between the two, impacting the credibility and objectivity of the evaluation outcomes.
Why Hire an external evaluator?
While internal evaluation is an excellent cheaper alternative, the need for an external evaluation is often quite pronounced in measuring the effectiveness of a project. Utilising an external evaluator who questions established practices, reexamines available data, and devises innovative evaluation strategies can significantly amplify your organisation’s ability to assess and quantify impact. Numerous funding sources mandate nonprofits to collaborate with external evaluators.
External evaluators deliver an impartial, unbiased evaluation, fostering openness and responsibility. Their specialised knowledge and independence elevate the trustworthiness of the evaluation process. Additionally, external evaluators can serve as a cost-effective solution. They often work on a project basis and reduce the long-term staffing expenses of an organisation.
The efficiency of external evaluators in completing assessments, especially for complex projects, can expedite decision-making and enhance program quality. Their involvement leads to more accurate, trustworthy, and efficient evaluations which makes them a pivotal asset in the pursuit of organisational excellence.
Benefits of an External Evaluator
Experience and Expertise
External evaluators work on a diverse range of programmes with several stakeholders. They can draw on this experience to inform current evaluation initiatives. Their expertise can be an asset to the organisation using their services, as they can bring innovation and creativity to the evaluation process. While internal evaluators may be highly skilled as well, external evaluators usually develop a range of expertise and evaluation knowledge.
Perceived Objectivity
External evaluators will most likely have an unbiased and objective view of the programme and its outcomes. Objectivity is imperative to understand the strengths and shortcomings of any program and understand what changes need to be made. Having a third party to do the evaluation also acts as a stamp of approval and stakeholders tend to take the results more seriously.
Out-Of-The-Box Perspective
Internal teams may sometimes be so immersed in the programme that they might miss the other emerging outcomes in the programme. External evaluators can add a fresh perspective and see things which may have gone unnoticed or share out-of-the-box suggestions.
Clear Distinction of Roles
Having an external evaluator can help keep staff and evaluator roles well-defined. It also creates a good mix of programme knowledge and evaluation expertise. It increases the seriousness among the program management and implementation team as well since they know the programme will be externally evaluated.
How Do You Choose an External Evaluator?
Selecting the right evaluator directly correlates to how reliable the final evaluation of your project or programme will be.
As you make your selection, take into account these key factors:
- Education & Expertise: Confirm that the evaluator possesses a formal education and extensive experience in your organisation’s specific field.
- Track Record: Investigate their past references and accomplishments. Dive deep into their success stories.
- Credentials: Scrutinise their qualifications and certifications in the realm of evaluation.
- Objectivity: Verify their capacity for impartiality and independence in their assessments.
- Financial Fit: Assess the cost of their services and make sure that it aligns with your budgetary constraints.
- Team Synergy: Evaluate their potential to collaborate effectively with your existing team, fostering a harmonious working relationship.
Conclusion
External Evaluators are the connecting link between a program’s regular operations and the program reaching a staggering level of excellence. By channelling objectivity, expertise, accountability, impartial perspective, specialised knowledge, and commitment to transparency, they can empower organisations to make informed, impactful decisions.
When organisations embrace the valuable contributions of external evaluators they can chart a course towards more efficient, effective, and successful endeavours. In this way, they might be able to unlock their full potential and a brighter future.
Works Cited
“Internal vs External Evaluation”. Health Assessment and Research for Communities. 2016.
“4 Advantages of an External Evaluator”. Brad Rose Consulting. 2013.
“Benefits of Internal vs. External Evaluation for County-Based Tobacco Control”. Huddleston, Braverman, Cooksy, Elmen. 2005
This blog is written by Anubha Singh, Research Associate at 4th Wheel Social Impact.
