Health and Wellness Leads : Workplace Physical Activity Programs: Types of Assessment

The sort of evaluation you choose depends on when you do it and the kind of information you gather.

This section describes when to use three types: formative, process and summative evaluations.

During the Design Stage

Use formative evaluations in the planning stages to see that your program is based on solid information. These evaluations also help you to cultivate effective and appropriate materials and procedures.

Examples of formative evaluations include:

• records of management commitments to the program
• employee interest surveys
• workplace environmental assessments
• pre-testing of program materials

During Your Initiative

A process assessment is used when the program is underway. These evaluations help you:

• track what is going well and what isn’t (and how to revise your program)
• discover if you are reaching the staff members you want to reach
• describe the program to others
• monitor who is participating in the initiative

During or After Your Initiative

Summative evaluations happen when the initiative is already in place or completed. Use this sort of assessment to measure what staff members like about the initiative and what could be improved.

All three types of evaluations are useful. The evaluation you choose depends on the time and financial resources you have available.