All Aboard ! Co-Designing Learning & Evaluation Journeys that Spark Joy

At I.G. Advisors (I.G.), we’re often approached to design and implement evaluations for our clients to understand the impact of their grantmaking, fundraising or programmatic strategies, and identify opportunities for evolution.

Increasingly, we’re now seeing demand for the design and implementation of emergent learning journeys, where rather than evaluating a project at a specific point in time (normally upon ‘completion’) and against rigid impact outcomes, we instead support learning and evolution throughout a programme, and look to answer key questions about what change is happening over time and how.

Why Co-Design Counts

As an Advisor at I.G., my role often involves leading on the design, facilitation, and analysis of learning for our clients. Co-design and participatory methodologies are central to this approach, to ensure those directly involved or affected by the change taking place get a say in how learning is captured and shared back out. This should always be in a way that’s inclusive of different ways of knowing (i.e., knowledge isn’t always ‘objective’ and quantitative) as well as different preferences for processing and passing on information.

A Learning Journey That Sparks Joy

A key request that has stood out for me in learning journey co-design is for activities and tools to feel ‘fun’ and ‘creative’, and for processes to avoid getting bogged down in unnecessary clutter. I have witnessed first hand the power of learning and evaluation processes that spark joy in those taking part, and understand this to be valuable in a number of ways:

1. Instilling a culture of learning — ‘Fun’ is valuable as it means people enjoy the time they spend reflecting, sharing out, and learning alongside others. I see joy as essential to facilitating and embedding a culture of learning throughout the duration of a programme, and within the fabric of organisations and movements. While content and subject matter can sometimes be heavy and emotionally challenging to engage with, the journey for identifying progress and change doesn’t have to be. Fun is especially important in contexts where taking time to stop and take stock of progress can otherwise feel like an extra ask, and cumbersome load, on already limited capacity. ‘Evaluation’ can feel boring but learning can look fun!
2. Taking a step away from the ‘day-to-day’ — Employing more ‘creative’ and sometimes ‘abstract’ exercises for mining learning invites people to step out of their ‘go-to’ methods for processing information, and into a different headspace and way of engaging with thoughts, data, and each other. We’ve found activities ranging from drawing, to ‘press conferences’, and Tweet walls to be particularly useful in allowing for exploration, the adoption of new mindsets, and interaction with questions or people in alternative ways.
3. Building momentum and buy-in — Emergent learning in particular can feel equal parts exciting and daunting, due to the expectation of continued evolution and adaptation, and a sense of non-stop questioning of proposed approaches to change. We’ve noticed that opportunities to bring people involved or affected by a project together in a more informal environment, allowing them to enjoy time together, and giving space to connect as human beings and celebrate progress (as well as admitting to challenges) can build solidarity, energy, and a powerful sense of being part of something bigger.

In the coming months, I will be continuing to explore perspectives on approaches to learning and evaluation in a series of coffees with individuals doing inspiring or creative work in the space. Interested in joining me for a coffee, or know someone I should invite? Please reach out to caitlin@ig-advisors.com. Keen to learn alongside me? Stay tuned for future blog posts!