Let’s face it.  Evaluation is a part of life.  We are all evaluated from the time we enter school (i.e., via classroom grades, the report card, via standardized testing, etc.), as well as throughout our lives and careers (i.e., via the job performance evaluation).  We all use evaluation processes to determine how we are doing and to look for ways to improve.

So why would one need evaluation research services from this organization or any other?  Here are a few key things to consider:

1. Evaluation can help to highlight the accomplishments of a program or organization.
2. Evaluation can help to shed light on deficiencies in the program.
3. Evaluation can inform current or future policy outcomes. In other words, did you accomplish what you set out to accomplish?  Do your policies need updating or new policies established?
4. Evaluation helps donors examine the expediency of their financial support, and informs their decision about future or continued support.
5. An evaluation report is useful to hand to anyone (e.g., community stakeholders) wanting to know more about the effectiveness of your program.

Furthermore:

6. Acquiring the services of an independent contractor allows program staff to focus fully on the day-to-day operations of your program or organization.
7. Although the contractor will work closely with program staff to understand the goal and mission of the organization, the contractor is also able to view the program or organization with a fresh set of eyes.

Finally, more than anecdotal summaries, data “speak” on their own.  The data show outcomes that transcend any one person’s opinion.  And so, evaluation research that is data-driven can bring everyone to the same page – indeed, to the same table!  And everyone can speak the same language!

Please visit the contact page if you would like to schedule a free consultation.  I look forward to hearing from you!

A Seat at the Table

I remember when I was in the first grade.  Our desks were laid out not in rows, but placed side by side, one abutting the other, around the periphery of the room.  We all faced each other, each looking to the center of the room.

At the head of the class, in front of the blackboard, sat the big teacher’s desk.  My teacher affixed our names at the top of each student desk.  Once we located our names on a desk, that is where we sat for the remainder of the year.

The U-shaped layout encouraged a non-hierarchical, egalitarian learning environment, but for one exception.  There was one prime location in which to sit.  Can you guess where?  That’s right – the desk right next to the teacher!  Everyone wanted the seat at the front of the class, next to the teacher.  In many respects, it was the seat of honor.  Whoever had the privilege of sitting in that desk was the proverbial “favored” one.  In our eyes (i.e., the students), the “favored one” was special because they sat next to the teacher!

Our society teaches us to favor the seat of honor. In our human imperfections, in our human insecurities, we desire to be the favored one who sits with kings and queens, with presidents, with CEO’s, with the rich and the famous.  But in the Gospel of Luke (Chapter 14), Jesus teaches the disciples to disregard the seat at the highest place of honor.  Rather, find another seat at the table, and save the best seat for someone else.  Do not take the coveted seat for yourself.  Step aside, and let someone else sit there.

At Alexander Research Consultants, LLC, our position is not to harbor the coveted seat at the table.  In the spirit of Luke 14, we seek to offer everyone a seat at the table.  Our goal is one of inclusivity.  We seek to include those voices that are traditionally marginalized and disenfranchised.  We recognize that people from all walks of life come with different perspectives.

Miles’ Law touts a philosophy that says: “Where you stand depends on where you sit.”  Where you stand on a certain issue depends on where you are positioned socially or politically.  A multi-millionaire will view life differently than a single parent struggling to hold three jobs.  A CEO will have a very different view of the company than the person occupying the receptionist desk.  The head of a Wall-Street firm may have a changing view of poverty if she suddenly finds herself leading a non-profit, global mission organization.  Our goal is to invite all voices to the table of social discourse.

We seek to be a voice for the voiceless through research and data.  That is what we do.  We care about all God’s people.  We believe everyone is special.  And everyone is invited to the table!

Thank you for visiting my blog page.  You can read this inaugural blog on a separate webpage.  Click the link At the Table to read it at anytime.