Towards Evaluation as a ‘Public Craft’1 and Evaluators as Stewards of the Public Good or On Listening Well

At this dawning of the new millennium, program and policy evaluation are widely practiced in such important societal domains as economic development, education, environmental management, family welfare, and community well being. But, evaluation rarely fulfills its own potential to be a powerful contributor to the health and vitality of these and other critical domains of social life. This is because evaluation is commonly viewed – and I will argue inappropriately so – as an activity practiced at a distance, apart from the contentious fray of political decision making about resources and priorities, in a space somehow shielded from special interests and advocacies, a bit like a little air bubble safe from contamination by bias and disease alike (Mark, Henry, and Julnes, 2000). From this protected space, evaluation smoothly contributes to the many initiatives of the New Public Management movement that has swept westernized democracies over the past decade (and energized or traumatized them, depending on your point of view). You are all familiar with this movement – some of its mantras are: • Accountability! Just do it! • Performance measurement for all! • Succeed in your office with results-based management! • Evidence-based decision making – the latest in what’s hip and cool! (See www.ebd.com now!