But, Who Has the Time?

There are two rules of thumb in performing higher-level evaluation. One is that the higher the level of data that you want, the more time consuming and frustrating it will be to get it. The other is a corollary to the first: The higher you go, the more expense you incur to get the information you need. You certainly cannot perform formal evaluation to levels 3, 4, or 5 on every program you offer, or you will never have the time or money to do anything else! On the other hand, who has the time to have their budget cut, capability questioned, lay off members of their staff, or find a new job?

If you are external to your target organization, your ability to get evaluation data is even more constrained. Many clients are not willing to pay for an expensive evaluation process on top of the original WLP services they asked for in the first place. To them, it ‚ s a given that the intervention is going to work well or else you shouldn ‚ t be selling it to them.