It’s vital to review your campaign plan regularly. By identifying specific measures at the planning stage that can be tracked over time, you can determine what’s working and what isn’t. You will then be able to adapt it to make your campaign more effective.
What is monitoring and evaluation?
Monitoring is the systematic, regular collection and analysis of information based on the targets and activities set during the planning stage. Evaluation is the systematic – sometimes retrospective – assessment of the campaign’s actions, results and achievements. NPC has produced a useful and concise guide to help you get started.
Why monitor and evaluate?
- To check progress against expectations – your own, stakeholders’, the community’s
- To demonstrate efficiency, effectiveness, and impact
- To be accountable – to your campaign group and stakeholders
- To learn for future work and planning – to help you improve and increase your chances of success
Some useful definitions
There are different terms used in monitoring and evaluation which can help you think about what’s most important for you to measure:
Activities/processes – What activities or processes you use to implement the campaign
Outputs – The specific results of your campaign’s activities or processes
Indicators – Things you want to know to assess the campaign’s effectiveness
Outcomes – Significant changes the campaign makes that lead to the final impact you want
Impact – The ultimate effect on the lives of those you want change for
At its most basic, monitoring and evaluation should help you to answer questions like these:
- What was supposed to happen?
- What did happen?
- Why were there differences?
- What worked? What didn’t?
- In what ways has our understanding about the situation deepened or changed?
- What should we do or have done differently?
Useful Link
Monitoring and evaluation resources, in English, Spanish and French, from the UN Women’s Virtual Knowledge Centre to End Violence Against Women and Children.
