Further stakeholder engagement

What is it?

Sustaining and developing stakeholder engagement to support future social marketing activity, possibly to confront new challenges and opportunities.

Why do this?

• Making sure that the learning gained during the process and evaluation is put to good use

• It is an opportunity to reflect, learn, strengthen relationships and re-energise

• Helping to sustain stakeholder involvement is one of the most important aspects of the follow-up stage and will be central to any ongoing intervention

How might you do this?

• Meet with stakeholders and give all the parties an opportunity to see how effective the evaluation was

• Hold a dedicated review session, where key stakeholders and evaluators are brought together to review the findings

• Look at what was covered in the evaluation and consider if the correct indicators were used, was the research robust, was anything missed

• Give stakeholders the opportunity to question and, if they wish, to take issue with the evaluation results. Some may disagree and some may highlight possible gaps in the evaluation and how it might be strengthened

• Record stakeholder views (including funders and commissioners) to sit alongside any formal evaluation report

• Enable stakeholders to reflect on the whole process and ask what it all means for the target audience and key stakeholders

• Try and generate a ‘learning culture’ where people recognise that there can be valuable lessons from interventions that did not work as well as intended

• Recognise and thank project members and stakeholders for their input and support to date

Tips

• Try and be open and generous with the evaluation findings, rather than guarding and restricting people’s access

Output

• Key staff and stakeholders aware of how the intervention has worked and what the possible ways forward might be

Intended Outcome

• The team is in a position to decide on the next steps for delivery partners, stakeholders, the target audience, and the intervention