PIEs assessment: what is the point?

You don't fatten a pig by weighing it.

So the saying goes. What, then is, the point of 'assessing' a service as a PIE?

In this section of this site (in the linked pages, column right), we explore a range of issues in assessment and evaluation of complex needs services, as that is the central focus of this site.

But the rest of this section is given over to our own approach to PIEs assessment, with the Pizazz, both the 'pen and paper' version, and now the software - the PIE Abacus.

 

On evaluation : specifics

In 'On evaluation' we look first at some of the more abstract or theoretical issues in the approaches and styles of evaluation, and their relevance - if any - to the assessment of PIEs.

This area is probably mainly of immediate interest to researchers looking for an appropriate methodology for evaluation.  It does, however, offer some word of caution for others, such as policy makers and funders, who  who want the services they fund to be 'evidence-based', and so might be seen as the 'end users' of evaluation methods.

In 'The Pizazz', we then illustrate an alternative approach, formulated especially for services that wish to develop using the PIEs framework.

 

The Pizazz on paper

This approach is then outlined in principle using 'the Pizazz on paper' - the version of this process that was published in 2018.

We have some very positive feedback on how useful it has been, though this is still largely anecdotal. This is partly a reflection of the fact that there is no central organisation to collect and collate feedback more consistently.

But it is primarily a reflection of the nature of the Pizazz process and philosophy itself, which aims to radically decentralise the process of assessment, to make it fully integrated into services self development planning.

 

The PIE Abacus 

In the PIE Abacus pages, we introduce the software version of the Pizazz, which goes on general release only in the Spring of 2021 (after some three years of development and piloting).

The PIE Abacus aims to preserve the decentralised nature of the 'Pizazz on paper' assessments, and the full integration into service planning. But the PIE Abacus, as software, then also lends itself to sharing and pooling or assessment, forming a bigger picture.

 

Relative strengths

For a little more on the relative strengths of each - the Pizazz 'on paper' and the Pizazz 'on screen' - see :  HERE

Meanwhile, for more on the business model underlying the PIE Abacus' aims to bring about an active shared, community of practice approach to developing the PIE approach, in future, see:

  • PIE Abacus use and terms of use : HERE
  • Costs as income: HERE
  • PIE Abacus - balancing cost factors: HERE

Further background reading/listening/viewing

On evaluation : specifics

  • Service evaluation by outcomes: HERE
  • Evaluations of specific interventions: HERE
  • Whole systems evaluation: HERE
  • Formative vs summative evaluation: HERE
  • Outcome and process assessments: HERE

The Pizazz on paper and on screen : HERE

 

The Pizazz on paper

  • The Pizazz on paper - the paperwork : HERE
  • The Pizazz approach to assessment: HERE
  • The coffee break Pizazz: HERE
  • The Pizazz - what is it NOT? : HERE
  • The Pizazz as a research tool: HERE

 

The PIE Abacus

The simplest, most effective way to evaluate and improve your PIE from Daniel O'Brien on Vimeo.

For more on the PIE Abacus, see:

  • The PIE Abacus - an on-line Pizazz (summary) : HERE
  • Ambition and modesty : HERE
  • The PIE Abacus - FAQs : HERE
  • PIE Abacus use and terms of use : HERE

 

Library items

The PIE Abacus- essential briefing for PIE leads (and any others in comparable roles) : HERE