This workshop is for practitioners and managers who are expected to 'do evaluation' on top of everything else. 

As a practitioner or manager you are often expected to:

• Write evaluation plans alongside program planning, delivery, and reporting

• Produce clear evidence of impact with limited time, budget and data

• Respond to funder expectations that don’t always match program scope

The result can be unclear objectives, excessive data collection, and reporting that seems more complicated than it should be. 

This workshop responds to these challenges. The workshop does not add more theory or try to turn you into an evaluator. 

Instead, it equips you with the skills for 'good enough' evaluation .

What makes this workshop different?

• It starts with clearly defining what your program can feasibly achieve, not methods. Before choosing methods, we clarify what your program can realistically achieve.

• It rejects technical perfectionism. Good evaluation is not the most complex design. It is the most appropriate one.

• It recognises constraints. Time, staffing and access to data are integrated into the approach rather than seen as failures. 

• It follows a structured learning curve. Each step logically leads to a clear, practical evaluation plan that is fit for purpose.

This is practical evaluation training for practitioners and managers who need to meet funder expectations without becoming evaluation experts.

What skills will I develop if I participate?

By the end of Evaluation without the Overwhelm™, you will be able to: 

• Define realistic, measurable outcomes in complex systems

• Design proportionate evaluation plans

• Develop focused evaluation questions that are credible without being excessive or unrealistic

• Match data collection and analysis approaches to your time, staffing and access constraints, without compromising quality

• Build evaluation into planning from the start, so reporting clarity is embedded, not retrofitted at the end

Instead of being uncertain about whether your evaluation is “good enough,” you’ll leave with a structured approach you can apply immediately.

What tools will I get if I participate?

You will leave with a valuable collection of reusable tools:

• A completed Evalution Plan for one of your programs, ready to put to work with your team

• A structured Evaluation Planning Workbook: A guided, step-by-step workbook you can use for current and future programs

• A Context-Fit Methods Matching Guide: A practical decision tool to help you select data collection approaches that are appropriate to your scope and capacity.

• A Realistic Outcomes Template: A template to define outcomes that are measurable and achievable

• A Certificate of Completion for professional development records

How can I get my manager's support to participate?

We understand that asking for professional development support can sometimes feel uncomfortable, especially when budgets are tight and workloads are high.

To make this easier, we’ve drafted a sample email you can adapt and send to your manager. 

Sample email:

Subject: Request to attend Evaluation without the Overwhelm Workshop

Dear [Manager's Name]

I’m seeking approval to attend Evaluation without the Overwhelm™, a practical workshop designed for practitioners and managers who are responsible for program planning, reporting and evaluation.

The workshop focuses on strengthening evaluation without increasing administrative burden. It provides a structured approach to:

• defining realistic, measurable program outcomes 

• developing focused evaluation questions

• matching data collection and analysis approaches to time, staffing and access constraints, without compromising quality.

• Building evaluation into planning from the start, so reporting clarity is embedded

It directly supports:

• Fit for purpose evaluation plans

• Stronger alignment between planning, delivery and reporting

I will apply the tools to our current programs and share key frameworks and templates with the team to strengthen our overall approach.

Thank you for considering this request.

Kind regards,
[Your Name]

Who will facilitate the workshop?

Evaluation without the Overwhelm™ is facilitated by Melinda Craike and Bo Rolih, co-founders of OfO.

Together, we bring more than four decades of experience across prevention, health promotion, place-based and community programs, working both inside organisations and alongside them in not-for-profit, government and higher education settings. 

We have designed and facilitated more than hundered workshops and training programs for diverse audiences, including those from not-for-profit, government, research, community, media, and business sectors. We have taught program design, planning and evaluation at undergraduate and Master's levels.

We understand both the theory and the reality. 

Which is why we design structured, applied workshops grounded in real programs, so participants leave with confidence and capability to plan and explain evaluation in a way that is fit-for-purpose and realistic for complex programs. 

How do we work?

Pragmatic. Practical. Purposeful.

Expect practical activities, learning from the person next to you, not just the person at the front, and hands-on work on actual programs. We use power point slides, but they’re purposeful and free of essay-sized bullet points. 

You'll leave with practical tools, transferable skills, and reusable templates.