We supply customized approaches and tailored solutions to our clientele in the public and private sectors in Canada and abroad. We specialize in evaluation and performance measurement, organizational analysis and planning, policy analysis and development, training and course development, and applied research.
EVALUATION & PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT
Evaluation of programs, policies and initiatives is a core business area for DPM Research. The DPM team works with clients on various stages of the evaluation process including evaluability assessments, evaluation framework development, evaluation planning, process/formative evaluations, and outcome/impact/summative evaluations. A strong planning phase for all of our projects as well as the use of multiple lines of evidence, allows us to compile evidence and triangulate results to provide solid conclusions to our clients. In addition, a key emphasis of all our evaluation work is to produce clear reports and presentations that include recommendations designed to assist organizations in the improvement of programs and initiatives.
DPM also works with clients so that they clearly understand their organizational performance, at both the operational and strategic levels. Our services include the development, analysis and evaluation of performance measurement systems, including performance measurement strategies, indicator development, scorecards, and other tools. One priority in our performance measurement work is to connect performance measurement results with planning initiatives, governance structures and accountability policies.
APPLIED RESEARCH
Our services in applied research are targeted towards clients who have questions related to a particular topic or area that would benefit from answers derived from the systematic application of research methods. These questions can range from quite specific and detailed to much more exploratory. The DPM team has expertise with various methods and tools that we can tailor and implement to address most questions.
Examples of applied research in higher education include studies such as recruitment, admission and market studies, or student satisfaction, engagement and success. We also have experience in economic impact studies, literature reviews and environmental scans, health indicators surveillance, proposal development, pilot projects for experimental design, determining civic engagement, evaluating health risk perception, psychosocial risk management, and analysing meta-organizational decision-making.
ORGANIZATIONAL ANALYSIS & PLANNING
DPM Research assists organizations in learning about themselves. Areas we help organizations examine are their governance structures, functional design, strategic planning and forecasting capacity, outcome and financial performance, and key risk areas. Depending on the specific goal of the project, our team works with all levels within an organization, from front-line services through to senior decision-makers. A value added of our approach to organizational analysis is to look beyond the organization to understand the context their immersed in, by examining best practices, or developing benchmarks so our clients gain an understanding of their environment and can identify actions to further their goals.
POLICY ANALYSIS & DEVELOPMENT
We collaborate with all levels of government to help them understand areas of concern, identify priorities and design policy solutions. The DPM team approaches issues of interest by identifying gaps, ensuring that relevant stakeholders are involved in the process, and understanding different perspectives. Working closely with our clients, we consider potential risk areas and possible resource constraints in any design and development of policy solutions. We place strong emphasis on grounding recommendations on evidence collected from the field and on the evaluation of opportunities for policy transfer from other jurisdictions where success has been demonstrated. Understanding that policy development and implementation are closely interwoven, we can support our clients during the implementation stages to assess possible adjustments to the policies being formulated.
TRAINING & COURSE DEVELOPMENT
Training and tailored course development are key components of our overall approach to knowledge transfer and mobilization. The development and implementation of courses follows current best practices in curriculum development for professional and adult education. Our DPM team members are dynamic educators with an interactive style, providing services in English, French and Spanish.
Content Areas
Post-Secondary Education: DPM partners have experience in numerous areas relevant to the post-secondary sector, including: policy development and interpretation, accountability, financial modelling and projections, demand projection, evaluation of scholarship programs, retention analysis, time to completion, engagement and satisfaction surveys, alumni experience and integration to the work place, international students, on-line education, economic impact on the regional economy, economic valuation of research, investment for infrastructure, and bibliometric research.
Science, Research and Innovation: DPM team members have extensive experience in various aspects of science research and innovation including funding for basic and applied research, evaluation of research grants and research development programs, evaluation of employment outcomes in the scientific sector determination of the economic impact of research investment projects, economic and financial return on government investment, policies to promote innovation, and successful research proposal development.
Economic and Community Development: DPM partners have experience with infrastructure funding programs for municipalities, researching factors for developing community resilience, rural and urban community development models, community economic impacts from various initiatives and organizations, evaluation of employment and skills development programming for various populations including youth, older workers, Aboriginal, at-risk populations, and organization of nature conservation areas.
Health and Wellness: DPM team members have extensive experience working on population and public health issues including developing and managing large-scale community health assessments regarding environmental health concerns, health indicator surveillance, evaluating public health programming in the areas of nutrition, chronic illness, injury prevention, health promotion, immunization, mental health and addictions, and assessing insurance models, and funding for health infrastructure projects.
Indigenous Issues: The DPM team has worked in various capacities with programming centered on the needs of indigenous groups in Canada. This has resulted in unique experience and skills in consulting with various members of Aboriginal communities including First Nations, Inuit and Métis. These consultations have focused on issues concerning health and wellness, environment, employment, economic and community development, and youth.
Social and Cultural Issues: Team members have worked in the areas of housing and homelessness, youth development and participation, volunteering and giving, cultural and language exchanges, and arts and culture promotion and marketing.