Susan Lynds, innovative evaluation work

Susan Lynds conducts innovative and important evaluation work for the CIRES Education & Outreach group, CIRES, others at the University of Colorado, NOAA, and countless other organizations and agencies. Notably, she designed and implemented evaluation systems for the NOAA Climate.gov and drought.gov websites, critical information portals for diverse audiences.

Her professional and exhaustive approach to evaluation goes well beyond her normal job, according to her nomination package. Lynds balances many projects at once, works at home and on weekends to complete necessary tasks, and she offers her clients remarkable skill and insight that creates efficiencies and improves return on investment.

Lynds’ work “has advanced the field and our program practices and standards for evaluations,” one person wrote in support of her nomination. “Those not familiar with evaluation as a profession may not realize that it requires constant generation of small methodological innovations, which may be easily overlooked but are essential to effective evaluation work. Moreover, this range and variety in Susan’s work is possible—and only possible—because she has remarkable skill in managing projects and time.”