Collecting data without drowning in it
Collect only what you use, and ask less of the people it is about.
For charities and non-profits, social enterprises and 1 moreImprovementBelongs to
- For
- Charities and non-profits, Social enterprises, Impact data & software
- Perspective
- Improvement
- Phase
- Intelligence design, Intelligence operations
- Frameworks and methods
- Lean Data, Most significant change (MSC)
- Technology
- LimeSurvey and Typeform, Data platforms
- Keywords
- Monitoring plan, Baseline study
Collecting data often feels like a burden. For the team, and for the participants who get yet another survey. It can be lighter. Collect just enough to make better choices.
Five principles
- Start from a decision. What will you do with this data?
- Start small. A few good indicators say more than a long list.
- Build it into your work.
- Show people what you did with their data.
- Improve your approach when you learn something.
Stories and numbers
You collect stories by asking regularly what the most important change was. Discuss them together in the team. Take numbers first from what you already have, such as sign-ups, attendance and case files. A short measurement before and after often says more than a big survey.
For a report to your funder or board you rarely need more. An investor, too, gets more from three good numbers than from thirty. A social enterprise often has those numbers already, in its customer data and its mission.
Tools
You don’t need an expensive system. A spreadsheet or a simple form gets you a long way. If you do choose a product, look at the data model and the integration with what you already use. Ask whether it links to standards such as IRIS+. And ask what is on the roadmap.
Building it into your work
- Ask one learning question in every team meeting.
- Make sign-up a moment to collect data.
- Use notes from daily work as a source.
- Capture stories during ordinary work.
Asking less of people
- Ask something once, and use it often.
- Fill in forms in advance with what you already know.
- Give people something back for their time.
Signs it is getting too much
- You collect data just in case.
- A survey takes longer than ten minutes.
- Data sits unused in a spreadsheet.
- Colleagues ask the same participants the same questions.
- Participants experience filling in forms as a punishment.
After six months, check which data you actually used. You can drop the rest.
