Evaluation Research in Organizational Change Interventions: Considerations and Some Suggestions

Abstract

This paper describes some important considerations for planning and performing evaluation research in organizational change interventions. The author suggests that the very process of planning for evaluation can improve interventions through specific emphasis on clarification of problems, program objectives, intervention procedures, and expected outcomes. Some methodological problems of evaluating organizational change interventions are reviewed, along with suggestions for how these issues might be reasonably approached. Suggested is the use of a pre-evaluation framework to aid practitioners in planning effective evaluation designs. Key considerations include involvement of organizational decision makers, development of a situation change model, and use of evaluative methods and measures that corroborate evidence of outcomes. The references and examples, drawn from the literature on evaluation research and organizational change, should be useful for practitioners and decision makers interested in evaluating planned organizational change efforts.