Ray Rist: An Evaluator at the Government Accountability Office (GAO)

Abstract

Background: Program evaluation and performance audit are distinct professional practices. Performance audit draws heavily on its financial accounting and auditing roots while evaluators have much more multidisciplinary backgrounds. Performance audit practice and development is associated with audit institutions such as National Audit Offices and internal audit while program evaluation is more associated with government departments and agencies in the public sector. The two practices are often working in the same group or organization but not necessarily together which could be mutually beneficial.

Purpose: The paper examines the early contribution that Ray Rist made to resolving the methodological challenge of performance auditors and program evaluators working together, early in his career at the GAO.

Setting: Independent National Audit Offices and government departments and agencies in the U.S.A. and Canada.

Intervention: n/a.

Research Design: The analysis of two early approaches to program evaluation to assess how they facilitated performance auditors and evaluators to work together.

Data Collection and Analysis: Data were collected through an analysis of documents, publications and discussions with colleagues and associates of Ray Rist.

Findings: Ray Rist worked in the group at the GAO that did evaluations and training of the multi-disciplinary staff in evaluation methodology and procedures. The approach, led by Ray, was a methodology that used multidisciplinary teams to answer specific questions. It encompassed a broader set of questions and that can more easily be used by performance auditor and program evaluators. It generally was less restricted in its application and use than other definitions of program evaluation that were based on an evaluation of a unit of analysis of a program or sub program. His early methodology transfer paper, written while Ray was at the GAO was in use for some time after he left, with numerous updates continuing with the same themes developed in the first iteration. These themes were foundational and carried into Ray’s future work, still having a strong resonance today.