Issues involved in empowering evaluation conducted with grass-roots organizations are discussed. One major issue centers on conflicting evaluation standards evaluators and stakeholders may have, and another is whether there is harmony between the empowerment model's goals of evaluation ownership and group advocacy. (SLD)

Discusses and defines participatory or user-design in the fields of instructional design and performance technology and describes systemic change as a context for user-design. Topics include stakeholder involvement, ethnographic field methods, cooperative design, action research-based user-design, user-design decision guidelines, and leadership.…

Survey responses from 100 providers and 100 purchasers of open learning materials/media found confusion over the definition of open learning; use in management development to be recent; and a shift to CD-ROMs and videoconferencing. Purchasers and end-users determined success of a medium; therefore, stakeholders' context/environment should be…

Results of a survey of 564 Canadian and American evaluators and evaluation project descriptions provided by a subsample of 348 evaluators indicate that evaluators support a utilization-focused, stakeholder service orientation and think that maximizing evaluation use is a primary responsibility of evaluators. (SLD)

Proposes a process approach to validity that addresses assessment validation in the context of high-stakes assessment. This approach includes a test evaluator or validator who considers the perspectives of five stakeholder groups at four different stages of assessment maturity in relation to six aspects of construct validity. Illustrates each…

Key issues in evaluating the effectiveness of research organizations are examined, and the following approaches for evaluation are explored: (1) the goal-attainment approach, (2) the strategic constituency approach, (3) a systems approach, and (4) a competing values framework. (SLD)

A survey of 44 Dutch human resource development (HRD) professionals, 357 trainees, 242 supervisors, and 124 workers indicated that involvement of these stakeholders in strategic alignment of HRD with company objectives and their opinions of the quality of the alignment process influence the perceived effectiveness of HRD. (SK)

Contends activists have a new weapon (the Internet) which can change the organization-stakeholder dynamic. Uses recent development in stakeholder theory to explain how the Internet, when used effectively, can allow activist groups to become more powerful and to command the attention of organizations. Illustrates the theoretical points presented…

Examines whether certain contextual conditions influence the effectiveness of HRD (human resource development) programs and activities, based on contingency theory. Discusses results from questionnaires completed by stakeholders of two types of HRD programs from companies in two economic sectors. (Author/LRW)

Employed a stakeholder framework to examine the changing salience levels of a state business group as it tried to shape educational policy during a 5-year period of intense state-level reform. Using case study methods, researchers address the relationship between the changing salience of the group and the dynamic environment of educational policy…

Mega planning has a primary focus on adding value for all stakeholders. It is realistic, practical, and ethical. Denning and then achieving sustained organizational success is possible. It relies on three basic elements: (1) "A societal value-added "frame of mind" or paradigm": your perspective about your organization, people, and our world. It…

The quest and agitation for the enthronement of corporate integrity in the nation's universities by the stakeholders have become almost hysterical given the often alleged, sometimes proven, cases of mal-administration, fund embezzlement and or misappropriation, over bloated or even fake invoicing, unbridled favoritism, sexual harassment, bribery,…

The goals of the early childhood business plan are to explain, inform, and guide public and private stakeholders and policymakers and the general public about the investments and activities required for all children to have opportunities for school success. The business plan presented in this report has two parts, an asset review and an action…

This summary describes the current status of Minnesota's early childhood care and education system. It is based on a review of several dozen plans and reports produced since 2000, and group discussions and interviews around the state with about 175 early childhood stakeholders. It also provides recommendations for how to improve upon assets and…

The Pilot schools Experiential Education Demonstration (PSEED) project was intended to deepen and embed high-quality experiential education within each participating school's academic programs. A continuation of a multiyear set of initiatives by the Barr Foundation, PSEED was an effort to unify the foundation's content area foci on arts,…