Shanna Ratner and Melissa Levy of Yellow Wood Associates presented an 8-hour You Get What You Measure® training. Everyone likes to see progress. Measurement provides tangible evidence of progress that motivates further action. This is true whether the goal is physical fitness, fund raising, environmental health, or literacy. Measurement helps people know where they are now, and helps them get to where they want to be. Choosing what to measure and how are creative processes that involve action and reflection. The measurement process presented during this session can be used to test your assumptions about the way the world works, reframe what is important to you, and create a new focus for your energies. What do you really want? And how will you know when you're getting it? In a world that is beginning to recognize the difference between outputs (the things we do) and outcomes (what actually happens as a result), increasingly we are asked to provide concrete evidence that our efforts are making a difference. The process of identifying indicators and developing measures of progress can be a powerful tool for personal and organizational development as well as a key to reflection and learning. This workshop engaged participants in clarifying goals, identifying indicators and effective measures on progress, and learning to use new information to make better decisions.
Innovators in Rural Community Economic Development
