Charting a Strategic & Effective Data Journey
Last month, Coeffect hosted a virtual webinar with our longtime client, Emergency Family Assistance Association (EFAA). Together, we explored how nonprofit leaders can help their teams build data capacity in ways that are strategic and effective data.
During our 90-minute webinar, we discussed how to best understand your organization’s data practice, common barriers and enablers to data success, and data’s contribution to your fundraising and sustainability strategy. Finally, we reviewed a set of potential “data moves” organizations can pick from as they begin their data journey. Throughout the webinar, EFAA highlighted their own experiences with building their data and learning function, and shared some of their most helpful tools and tactics.
If you weren’t able to join this webinar (or even if you were), we’ve captured the main points below so you can apply these in your organization!
EFAA's Data Journey
EFAA’s data journey began back in 2014. At that time, EFAA’s data practice consisted of reporting mandated metrics for grant compliance… something their team called “feeding the beast.” However, the team (in particular, EFAA’s CEO Julie Van Domelen) knew that data could help them do so much more - and if approached thoughtfully, their data practice could help the whole EFAA team understand their impact.
Their first step was to hire technical support (us!) and define the Theory of Change for the organization as a whole and for each of EFAA’s program areas. With our support, the EFAA team developed outcome and output indicators for each of their program areas, and consolidated these in a results measurement handbook.
Next, EFAA hired a full time Data, Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator. In addition to aggregating the metrics outlined in the Results Measurement Handbook, she got to know each staff member personally, and coached them in entering and/or reviewing data. Over time, the EFAA team created a system of monthly and quarterly data review meetings to help all staff understand the team’s programmatic results. Today, EFAA has clear data systems and a continuous improvement process in place.
Since starting on its data journey, EFAA has been able to share more impactful, data-centric stories; built a culture of data, accountability and accuracy; and enjoys stronger collaboration. This helped them function better as a team, and has also helped them win new and/or sustained funding from government and philanthropic partners.
Barriers & Enablers of EFAA's Data Practice
EFAA shared that one of the biggest barriers to their data practice was ownership of their data systems. The organization’s primary database is shared across multiple agencies across the county, and so making even small changes is a time-intensive, lengthy process. Recently, EFAA was asked to start entering data into another database as part of a new initiative, which has led to double data entry and having to pull data from multiple sources. Unfortunately, this scenario of balancing multiple databases and having limited influence in the design of those systems is not uncommon.
On the flipside, one of the main enablers of EFAA’s data practice has been their investment in a texting app that they use to communicate with their participants and collect timely data from their community. Seventy five percent of participants have indicated that text communication is their preferred method of contact. This method of communication has allowed EFAA to share quick tidbits of information with their participants, such as sharing COVID-19 vaccination information or tips on staying safe during a heat wave. It has also allowed them to collect very short surveys quickly, with a higher response rate than they would have achieved by distributing surveys via email.
A second important enabler of EFAA’s data practice is monthly meetings with program managers to review metrics and reinforce expectations. Regular data reviews reinforce the message “your data will be reviewed and used” and give program managers the opportunity to be involved in making sense of programmatic results. One important asset that supports these meetings is an Excel-based dashboard that all program managers help populate, which outlines key metrics for each program, and stores results over time.
EFAA's Top Data Moves
One of the most successful data engagement tactics EFAA has used is integrating its results measurement handbook into the new employee onboarding process. EFAA’s Data, Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator meets with all new staff and uses the handbook as an introduction to EFAA’s monitoring and evaluation process. The onboarding includes a walkthrough of the logic model for the program the new team member is working in, and this helps the new hire understand the program’s goals and key metrics.
Another important data move for EFAA was developing data products that help team members conveniently access and share important information.
Program Dashboard: EFAA created a dashboard in Tableau that connects to a copy of its database that helps visualize important metrics. This is helpful as Tableau allows the team to analyze and visualize results in ways that the database doesn’t.
Weekly Metrics: EFAA Data, Monitoring, and Evaluation coordinators also pulls a small number of “weekly metrics” that the Executive Team can use in conversations with funders and partners (e.g., last week EFAA served X people; this number has been increasing for the last several weeks).
Community Wellbeing Infographic: EFAA created a Community Wellbeing Infographic that illustrates some of the most important problems faced by families in Boulder County using data. This helps the team educate outsiders on why its mission is timely and important.
Wrapping Up
Prioritizing your organization’s data practice can yield some serious benefits! We’re grateful to EFAA for sharing their own data journey and for co-hosting this webinar with Coeffect. For those interested in watching the entire webinar, you can find it on Youtube.
We hope you get to check out some of the additional resources shared in the webinar. You can access our slides and additional resources here.
Finally, if you’d like to go even deeper on helping your team chart a strategic and effective data journey, just schedule some time to talk with us.