Title: The Business of Evaluation: Entering the World of Consulting

Date and time: Tuesday 17 February and Tuesday 24 February 2026, 10.00am to 1.00pm AEDT (registration from 9.45am) Registrants are to attend both sessions. (full day workshop - 2 sessions)

Venue: Via Zoom. Details will be emailed to registrants just prior to the workshop start time

Facilitator: Matt Healey

Register online by: Monday 16 February 2025. Spaces limited to 25 participants

Fees (GST inclusive): Members $375.00, AES Organisational member staff $505.00, Non-members $589.00, Student member $179.00, Student non-member $275.00* *Students must send proof of their full-time student status to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Purpose of Workshop

Evaluation as a field of practice can be deeply rewarding and, at times, challenging. Stepping into the world of consulting adds another layer of complexity: navigating competition, articulating your offer, and learning to think about evaluation as a business.
This workshop directly addresses that challenge. It’s designed to help you reflect on you value proposition, learn practical strategies for responding to opportunities, and explore how to sustain your work in a competitive landscape. Expect a space that’s reflective, hands-on, and fun — with plenty of opportunity to learn from others on a similar path.

Workshop Content

This workshop provides a practical, interactive, and supportive environment for evaluators who are considering, or already undertaking, consulting as a fee-for-service business. The aim is to help you translate your existing skills into a clear and confident consulting practice.
Across two half-day sessions, participants will work through exercises that focus on three principles:

• Value - understanding your unique contribution and how to communicate it effectively.

• Strengths - identifying what sets you apart and how to leverage those skills in your business model.

• Networks - building the professional connections and collaborations that help sustain your work.

The first session focuses on you as an evaluator - your value proposition, strengths, and your passion areas. This is translated into the foundations of a business model. The second session builds on this, including finding opportunities, building networks, and techniques for how you present your business to win work.
Participants will receive a digital PPT workbook to complete activities, ensuring that participants leave with a tangible resource to continue guiding their work after the workshop.

Workshop Outcomes

By the end of this workshop, you will be able to:

• articulate your value proposition - what you offer clients and how this informs your business strategy

• identify your professional strengths and develop a personal marketing approach

• plan and manage collaborations and networks that enhance your consulting capacity

• understand what it means to build a sustainable work pipeline, from identifying opportunities to maintaining client relationships

• develop responses to tenders and project briefs

Ultimately, this workshop provides more than just advice — it’s a practical, collegial space for learning, reflection, and skill-building. You’ll leave with tools, strategies, and a supportive network to help you grow your evaluation consulting practice with confidence and purpose.

PL competencies

This workshop aligns with competencies in the AES Evaluator’s Professional Learning Competency Framework. The identified domains are:

• Domain 1 – Evaluative attitude and professional practice
• Domain 3 – Culture, stakeholders and context
• Domain 5 – Project management
• Domain 6 – Interpersonal skills

Who should attend?

Anyone interested in establishing themselves as an evaluation consultant.

This workshop is Intermediate and Advanced in terms of evaluation skills, but Foundational in terms of business model skills.

Workshop start times

•  VIC, NSW, ACT, TAS: 10.00am

• QLD: 9.00am

• SA: 9.30am

• NT: 8.30am

• WA: 7.00am

• New Zealand: 12.00pm 

For other time zones please go to https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

About the facilitator

Matt Healey is a Consultant and Co-Founder at First Person Consulting (FPC). Since 2014, Matt has worked on research, evaluation and design projects that span health, social and environmental content areas with clients of all types. Matt’s passion is the exploration of different approaches and tools used in other industries, and how they might be applied in evaluation and design contexts. His latest interest is all things ‘systems’ and what this means for addressing the sorts of needs and problems that we tackle.

Matt has used SNA and other systems methods in a range of projects. This includes partnership mapping and evaluation in public health, exploring barriers and enablers to the repair of household electrical equipment for the circular economy, and design opportunities to improve student physical activity in secondary schools.

Matt has a reputation as an enthusiastic and adaptable consultant and facilitator, known for consistently producing and providing products and services that are both engaging and useful. Matt has delivered both in- person and online training in a range of contexts, including a 50-person evaluation capability building program for the Victorian State Government.