CONFERENCE EVALUATION

PLANNING

Good planning is essential !

(‘’fail to plan is plan to fail’’)

KEY SOURCES OF INFORMATION TO DESIGN A CONFERENCE EVALUATION PLAN

Conference objectives and expected outcomes

Conference information available to the public

Key documents disseminated to a restricted list of people involved in the conference planning & organization (e.g. concept notes, meeting reports, etc.)

Reports of & lessons learnt from previous conference evaluations

Consultations with as many stakeholders as possible, including committee members, conference organizers, etc.

KEY THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN DESIGNING A CONFERENCE EVALUATION PLAN

Who? The plan should preferably be designed by the evaluation team leader, in consultation with key stakeholders.

The plan should be eventually endorsed by the highest conference governing body.

When? The plan should be prepared well in advance and should be approved at least 3 months before the conference starts but this depends on the evaluation scope (e.g. some evaluations may include assessment of pre-conference events and processes that can start 6 months before the actual conference)

What? The plan should be a comprehensive document, easy to disseminate by email, and include the following…

KEY ELEMENTS TO INCLUDE IN A CONFERENCE EVALUATION PLAN

Why? Define the main goal of the evaluation, its objectives (these can be formulated as key questions to be answered through the evaluation) and focus (processes, outcome, impacts or all).

Identify who will use evaluation results and how.

This should also include background information on the conference to be evaluated.

How? Describe all methods/tools that will be used (the selection of these methods/tools is guided by the type of evaluation objectives and depends on what is achievable with the available human resources and within the timeframe). Need a good mix of quantitative and qualitative methods to ensure data triangulation. Describe how the data will be analyzed.

KEY ELEMENTS TO INCLUDE IN A CONFERENCE EVALUATION PLAN (cont.)

Resources & Budget

Description of human, physical and financial resources required to conduct the evaluation. Specify main responsibilities of each evaluation team member. Budget should be as detailed as possible.

Timeframe Ganttchart or timeline with main deadlines/targets.

Limitations Description of evaluation limitations.

Appendix

(examples)

List of persons consulted List of indicators and methods to measure them List of all planned surveys/interviews specifying for each of them the main focus, target group & administration period

EXAMPLES OF METHODS TO COLLECT DATA

Face-to-face or phone individual interviews (structured & semi-structured)

Focus group interviewsOnline surveysPrinted surveysStructured observations of key sessions and

conference areas Review of conference programme and online resourcesReview of statistical data on conference registration,

scholarship recipients, abstracts, etcReview of statistical data and evaluation findings from

previous conference to allow comparison over time

EXAMPLES OF METHODS TO COLLECT DATA (cont.)

Use of rapporteurs to follow sessions addressing key topics. Their feedback can be also used to measure some indicators (e.g. number of sessions presenting new findings).

Analysis of the conference media coverage. Review of posts and comments left by delegates and

non-attendees on the conference blog, Facebook page and Twitter.

“Mystery shopper" approach to test registration or other conference services.

Instant polling/feedback at conference using SMS/phones, voting systems and smart devices.