Public, Private, and Practitioner Voices Speak Truth to Power by Including Costs in Evaluation

Abstract Information: Using costs in evaluation goes beyond assessing an evaluand’s quality to determine its worth (Scriven, 2007). Persaud and Yates (2023) argue that using costs in evaluation remains grossly underutilized. The authors define costs as the value of all resources required and consumed to achieve outcomes, regardless of whether such resources were purchased, donated, or borrowed (Persaud & Yates, 2023). In their conceptualization, they further distinguish between monetary and non-monetary outcomes, with the former referred to as benefits and the latter as effectiveness (Persaud & Yates, 2023; Yates, 2020, 2021). Another way of conceptualizing costs is to think of a list of the resources evaluands used to meet the needs of targeted beneficiaries. On such a list would be the types, amounts, and values of resources that were used, like facilities and equipment, as well as resources that are used but conventionally not assigned a financial value in programming, such as the time of volunteers, the space donated to evaluands, and the time and expenses (i.e. transport, child care etc.) beneficiaries incur to receive services (Yates, 2020, 2021). What works? What doesn’t? What factors should be identified and considered when undertaking cost-inclusive evaluations? What activities encourage the use of cost-inclusive evaluations, and which strategies have been adopted to successfully promote the use of such methodologies? And where should evaluands, novice, and experienced evaluators start if they wish to use cost-inclusive methodologies more often? Our panel comprises six panelists who will provide insightful answers to these questions, and more, by drawing on multiple, yet diverse experiences, creative approaches, and innovative practices. Coming from public and private funders, evaluands, academia, and evaluation practitioners, each panelist offers a unique voice, exploring what could be done to stimulate the demand of cost-inclusive methodologies to inspire more prolific use by the next generation of evaluators. Audiences can look forward to learning about insightful evaluation approaches and practices, useful strategies, tips, and recommendations that have worked to effectively implement cost-inclusive methodologies in evaluation practice.