Clients as Program and Evaluation Leaders: Lessons Learned from a Nonprofit in Shifting Power to Communities

LIFT, a national nonprofit advancing family economic mobility, centers client voice in program strategy and evaluation. Over nearly a decade, we have developed, iterated, and improved upon a practice for sharing power with clients in programmatic decision-making. In this presentation, we will share insights and practical frameworks for embedding client leadership into program design and evaluation, which has helped us ensure that programmatic shifts and evaluation recommendations are valuable and relevant to families, as well as equitable. From our client feedback survey, a critical tool for obtaining broad feedback, to client-led interpretations of evaluation results, our assumptions have been challenged, and we have gained valuable lessons. By prioritizing co-leadership and collaboration, we have created an environment where clients are not only recipients of services but also agents in shaping those services, partnering with us to improve our program and push for systems change to improve families' economic futures.
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