Outcome Harvesting Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Monitoring and Evaluation Officers, Programme Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-ME-090

Before you join: Participants should understand basic results-based management concepts, including activities, outputs, outcomes and indicators.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Outcome Harvesting helps programmes identify and verify changes in relationships, policies, practices, behaviours and actions when results emerge through complex pathways. It is particularly useful where interventions do not control all contributing factors, baseline data are incomplete, or planned indicators fail to capture important outcomes. Development, humanitarian, governance and social-change teams use the method to document credible results, understand contribution and inform programme decisions.

This course teaches participants to plan and conduct an Outcome Harvesting process from the initial use question through outcome description, evidence collection, substantiation, analysis and reporting. Participants learn to distinguish outputs from outcomes, frame harvest questions, identify informants, prepare evidence logs and assess the programme's plausible contribution to observed change. The course also addresses ethical evidence gathering, managing bias, integrating harvested outcomes with existing monitoring systems and using findings against OECD DAC evaluation criteria.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with realistic cases from humanitarian response, public-sector reform, civil society advocacy and donor-funded programmes. Participants work with outcome statements, interview records, documentary evidence and substantiation plans, then receive structured feedback on their analytical decisions. Each participant leaves with an Outcome Harvesting implementation pack tailored to a current or planned programme, including a harvest question set, outcome description template, evidence plan, substantiation approach and reporting outline.

The course suits monitoring, evaluation, learning and programme professionals who need a credible way to capture change beyond routine indicator reporting. It is also valuable for managers commissioning evaluations, technical advisers overseeing adaptive programmes and donor staff reviewing evidence of contribution.

What you will be able to do

  • Design an Outcome Harvesting process around defined users, decisions and learning questions
  • Differentiate outputs, outcomes, impacts and contribution claims using clear result statements
  • Draft verifiable outcome descriptions using the who-what-when-where outcome format
  • Develop harvesting questions, informant maps and evidence collection plans
  • Assess evidence quality using source triangulation, credibility checks and documentation logs
  • Plan independent substantiation of harvested outcomes with suitable external sources
  • Apply contribution analysis to explain plausible programme influence on observed outcomes
  • Produce an outcome report and utilisation plan linked to management decisions

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Document credible outcomes that routine monitoring systems may miss
  • Write precise outcome descriptions suitable for evaluation reporting
  • Assess qualitative evidence without relying on unsupported success stories
  • Lead structured conversations with outcome informants and programme teams
  • Present contribution claims with appropriate evidence and limitations

For your organisation

  • Produces defensible evidence of change in complex programme settings
  • Improves reporting where indicators cannot explain important outcomes
  • Identifies unplanned positive and negative outcomes for management action
  • Strengthens donor reporting through documented substantiation and contribution claims
  • Connects evaluation findings to programme adaptation and resource decisions

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can explain when Outcome Harvesting is appropriate and distinguish it from adjacent evaluation approaches.

  • Outcome Harvesting purpose, origins and appropriate uses in complex programmes
  • Changes in behaviour, relationships, policies, practices and actions defined
  • Outputs, outcomes and impacts distinguished through results-chain examples
  • Comparing Outcome Harvesting with theory-based evaluation and contribution analysis
  • Retrospective outcome identification when baseline measures are incomplete or unavailable
  • Strengths, limitations and resource implications of the harvesting approach

Participants can scope an Outcome Harvesting process around intended users, decisions and feasible evidence sources.

  • Primary users, intended decisions and learning purposes specified early
  • Framing harvest questions around programme influence and observed change
  • Stakeholder mapping identifies outcome informants, validators and decision-makers
  • Selecting time boundaries, geographic scope and thematic outcome domains
  • Sampling strategies for large portfolios, dispersed partners and multiple interventions
  • Harvest workplans allocate roles, sequencing, budget and quality assurance

Participants can identify candidate outcomes and draft clear, verifiable outcome descriptions.

  • Candidate outcomes sourced from reports, interviews, meetings and monitoring records
  • The outcome description format captures who changed what, when and where
  • Writing observable change statements without unsupported claims of causation
  • Outcome boundaries separate a discrete change from background programme activity
  • Negative, neutral and unexpected outcomes included alongside intended changes
  • Classifying outcomes by actor, change type, significance and programme component

Participants can prepare focused harvest questions and collect qualitative evidence systematically.

  • Semi-structured harvest interviews elicit specific changes and supporting evidence
  • Probing questions establish timing, actors, mechanisms and perceived significance
  • Document review matrices organise reports, correspondence, policies and meeting records
  • Key informant selection balances proximity, independence and knowledge of change
  • Interview protocols address informed consent, confidentiality and participant safety
  • Evidence logs record source details, dates, quotations and verification status

Participants can assess the credibility, relevance and limitations of evidence supporting outcome claims.

  • Source triangulation compares interview accounts, documents, observations and administrative data
  • Credibility assessment examines source proximity, incentives, consistency and corroboration
  • Evidence-strength ratings distinguish confirmed, plausible and unverified outcome claims
  • Contradictory accounts documented rather than removed from the evidence record
  • Audit trails link each outcome statement to traceable source material
  • Bias checks address recall error, attribution bias and selective reporting

Participants can design and manage an independent substantiation process for selected outcomes.

  • Substantiation tests outcome descriptions through independent knowledgeable external sources
  • Selecting substantiators considers independence, access, expertise and conflict risks
  • Substantiation questions test accuracy, significance and programme contribution claims
  • Reviewer briefing packs include outcome statements, evidence summaries and protocols
  • Recording substantiation responses preserves agreement, disagreement and qualification
  • Escalation procedures address contested findings, sensitive outcomes and safeguarding concerns

Participants can make proportionate, evidence-based claims about programme contribution to outcomes.

  • Contribution claims distinguish programme influence from sole attribution assertions
  • Theory of change pathways connect activities, outputs and observed outcomes
  • Alternative explanations identified through rival hypotheses and contextual evidence
  • Process tracing tests causal links using hoop and smoking-gun tests
  • Contribution narratives state assumptions, supporting evidence and remaining uncertainties
  • Contextual factors analysed including political events, partner actions and external funding

Participants can analyse harvested outcomes to identify patterns, gaps, risks and learning priorities.

  • Coding frameworks group outcomes by theme, stakeholder, location and change type
  • Outcome matrices compare significance, evidence strength and contribution confidence
  • Pattern analysis identifies repeated mechanisms, bottlenecks and enabling conditions
  • Disaggregation examines outcomes by gender, age, disability and marginalised groups
  • OECD DAC criteria used to interpret relevance, effectiveness and sustainability
  • Negative outcomes and unintended effects translated into management questions

Participants can communicate Outcome Harvesting findings for accountability, learning and programme decisions.

  • Outcome narratives combine change statements, evidence, contribution and significance
  • Reporting formats matched to donor requirements, management audiences and communities
  • Evidence tables make substantiation status and limitations visible to readers
  • Visual outcome maps show pathways, actors and clusters of change
  • Learning briefs convert findings into decisions, adaptations and follow-up actions
  • Sensitive findings communicated with appropriate confidentiality and do-no-harm safeguards

Participants can create a practical plan for embedding Outcome Harvesting within existing M&E arrangements.

  • Monitoring plans identify when Outcome Harvesting complements routine indicator data
  • Harvest cycles aligned with programme reviews, evaluations and donor reporting
  • Roles defined for programme staff, M&E teams, partners and external reviewers
  • Data management protocols organise outcome records, evidence files and permissions
  • Quality assurance checklists support consistent descriptions, evidence and substantiation
  • Personal application plans specify scope, milestones, resources and immediate next steps

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Outcome Harvesting process plan
  2. Outcome description template
  3. Harvest interview question guide
  4. Evidence triangulation and substantiation checklist
  5. Contribution analysis narrative model
  6. Outcome reporting and utilisation plan

Who should attend

  • Monitoring and Evaluation Officers — need to document outcomes beyond indicator tracking
  • Programme Managers — need evidence of programme contribution for management decisions
  • Evaluation Consultants — need a participatory method for complex interventions
  • Learning and Accountability Advisers — need credible findings for adaptation and reflection
  • Humanitarian Response Managers — need to capture changing practices and coordination outcomes
  • Donor Programme Officers — need to assess outcome claims from funded partners

Skills and tools covered

Outcome identificationEvidence triangulationOutcome substantiationContribution analysisResults reportingAdaptive learning

Tools and standards

Outcome Harvesting, Contribution Analysis, OECD DAC evaluation criteria, Process Tracing

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short briefings to introduce the method, followed by facilitated case work using realistic programme records. Participants analyse outcome statements, interview extracts, monitoring data and documentary evidence in small groups. Simulations build confidence in harvesting conversations, evidence review and substantiation planning. Instructor feedback focuses on wording, evidence quality, contribution claims and practical reporting choices. Individual application planning helps participants adapt the method to their own programme scope, stakeholders, timetable and available resources.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should understand basic results-based management concepts, including activities, outputs, outcomes and indicators. Experience working on a development, humanitarian, public-policy or social-change programme is expected, ideally with access to a current programme example. Familiarity with routine monitoring data, project reports or stakeholder engagement will help participants apply the method quickly. Prior evaluation training, statistical analysis, specialised software and formal research qualifications are not required. The course explains contribution analysis and qualitative evidence assessment from first principles.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should understand basic project results terms such as outputs, outcomes and indicators, and have some programme experience. You do not need previous evaluation training, statistical expertise or specialist software skills.

Bring non-confidential information about a current or recent programme, such as a theory of change, monitoring plan, reports or examples of observed change. Materials can be anonymised where necessary.

It is designed for M&E staff, programme managers, learning advisers, evaluators and donor staff working with complex change processes. It is particularly relevant where routine indicators do not fully explain programme results.

Logframe monitoring tracks planned indicators and milestones, while Outcome Harvesting starts by identifying observed changes and then investigates contribution. It does not replace impact evaluation, but provides useful evidence where experimental or quasi-experimental designs are unsuitable.

You can use it for programme reviews, learning cycles, partner reporting, advocacy initiatives and evaluations of complex interventions. The implementation pack helps you define scope, identify informants, collect evidence and plan substantiation.

Training runs from 08:30 to 16:30 each day, providing approximately 32.5 contact hours over five days. Time is divided between method briefings, case analysis, group work, simulations, feedback and individual application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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