Utilizing emerging technology in program evaluation

Abstract

The force of fast-paced technological growth and globalization influence today's organizational environments. Successful organizations have become more nimble and responsive to these environmental realities, while simultaneously managing increasingly complex informational needs. The success of program evaluations will depend on evaluators' abilities to leverage future technologies to produce and disseminate knowledge in an accessible and actionable form. The authors propose that the roles and responsibilities of the evaluator will shift as current evaluation approaches are adapted to make effective use of these technological tools. Specifically, the authors discuss evaluators' future roles as collaborators with design-science practitioners, filterers and translators of information, and customizers of knowledge dissemination. © Wiley Periodicals, Inc., and the American Evaluation Association