When I lead workshops, one of my favorite types of activities involves using half-finished cartoons.
Sometimes I print out the cartoons as handouts, or I put them up on a slide and ask the participants to pull out a pen and paper. Then I ask them to try their hand at finishing the cartoons.
After that, we share out the results.
It’s a super fun way to launch a discussion into all sorts of topics. I’ve been in experimental mode lately and thought I would create a few sets that might be useful for evaluators. Let me know what you think, and if you would like me to create more of these.
Who is at the table?
The easiest way to form a consensus is to not invite anyone else to the table when it’s time to discuss the issue. Especially anyone who might not agree with you.
This is also the worst way to form a consensus.
Theories of change are negotiations.
You might all agree to a set of words that you put at the end of a logic model or theory of change. But that doesn’t mean that the goal written is the goal held in everyone’s minds. This cartoon is to help you start to find some of those unwritten goals.
All the important stakeholders.
You might want to create an exhaustive list of everyone who has a stake in your program or project. Especially the people who are not a part of your team.
Keep going with it.
I’d suggest going further and further down the rabbit hole. Keep asking the question in different ways.
Gut check time.
Many evaluators view themselves as speakers for a broad range of people.
But we can’t escape our own biases and privileges. Is your evaluation team composition representative of the community you are working within? If not, why not?
What happens when the funding stops?
Projects have lifespans. Some live longer than others. Recognizing the mortality is important.
And who is left behind?
People get caught up in projects. But after the project ends, people remain. Who are those people that will remain?
Download the 7 cartoon set as a Power Point deck.
You can now download the Power Point deck via Gumroad. For a free download, just put $0 in the box.
My Independent Consulting Jumpstart course is now Pay What You Want.
I decided I wanted to make the course way more accessible. So now you can grab it from Gumroad for whatever price you want to pay. This includes $0.
And there is absolutely no judgement for you putting $0 in the box.
Love this! I’ve started playing around with strategic illustration in evaluation after taking a course with Kat Haugh for the virtual AEA Summer Institute. I think there’s definitely a gap in this area–evaluators who illustrate.