basics of monitoring evaluating and deviating

 can learn a lot about your organization, how it is managed, and why it deviates from plan.

The great value of monitoring and evaluation

Monitoring and evaluating the planned activities and the implementation status of this program is as important as identifying strategic issues and goals for many organizations. An advantage of monitoring and evaluation is to ensure that the organization is following the path established during strategic planning and to determine why it deviates from the plan.

The above advantage is clear. When mature organizations do something with new information and content, they are more successful in learning and implementing it, and then continue to reflect on their experiences. By continuing to monitor the implementation of strategic plans, you can learn a lot about your organization and how to manage it.

Note that the plans are a guide but not a rule. It is okay to deviate from a plan , but planners must understand the reason for the deviations and update the plan to reflect the new direction.

 

Responsible for the implementation of the strategic plan and its evaluation

The strategic plan document should specify who is responsible for the overall implementation of the plan as well as who is responsible for achieving each goal .

This document should also specify who is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the program and making decisions based on the results. For example, the board may expect the executive to report to them regularly on the status of implementation, including progress toward each of the overall strategic goals . Instead, the executive director expects middle managers to regularly report on the status quo to achieve the specified goals.

Key questions when monitoring and evaluating and deviating from the program

1. Are the specified goals and objectives realized or not? If they are, acknowledge progress, reward and let the team know. If not, consider the following questions.
2. Will the goals be achieved according to the time frame specified in the plan? If not, then why?
3. Should the project completion deadline be changed? (Be careful when making these changes – find out why attempts are lagging before changing the time)
4. Do the personnel have enough resources (money, equipment, facilities, training, etc.) to achieve these goals?
5. Are the goals still realistic?
6. Should priorities be changed to focus more on achieving goals?
7. Should goals change? (Be careful making these changes – be sure to check why these efforts did not achieve the goals set out.)
8. What can you learn from the monitoring and evaluation?

Frequency of monitoring and evaluation

The frequency of reviews depends on the nature of the organization and the environment in which you operate. Organizations with rapid internal or external change may want to monitor plan implementation at least monthly. The board of directors should review the implementation status at least quarterly. Senior managers should review the situation at least monthly. To have a better monitoring and evaluation strategy, you can consult Rokh’s monitoring and evaluation team .

Monitoring and evaluation results report

Always write down status reports. Describe the following in reports:

1. Answer the key questions above when monitoring implementation.
2. Identifying issues of the day in relation to progress (or lack of progress) towards specified goals
3. Necessary advice about the situation
4. Any actions required by management

Deviation from the schedule

Deviating from the plan is not a bad thing at all. The plan you chose is only a guide, not a detailed road map to follow.

Usually, organizations will change direction in the coming years. Changes in the program are usually caused by changes in the external environment of the organization or customer needs in different organizational goals, changes in the availability of resources for the implementation of the original program, etc.

The most important aspect of deviating is knowing why you are deviating, that is, understanding what is happening and why.

change plan

Make sure a mechanism is specified to change the plan if necessary. For example, write the following about changes:

1. What factors cause changes?
2. Why should changes be made?
3. List any changes that have been made, including in goals, responsibilities, and timelines.

Manage different versions of the plan (including by putting a new date in each new version of the plan).

Always keep old versions of the plan.

Always note what can be learned from recent planning to make the next strategic planning more efficient.

Having an experienced team in the field of strategic management and strategic planning, the consulting company can plan, evaluate and monitor your organization and company in the right direction. Consultants are with you from the beginning of work, so that you can have the best management and supervision experience.

 

Source: managementhelp