Introduction

The final step of the regulative cycle is evaluation. Evaluation refers to the careful observation and appraisal of the process and the effects of a business problem-solving (BPS) project. An evaluation should tell whether a project is successfully completed, whether improvements need to be implemented, and what can be learnt for the future.

Unfortunately, many projects are terminated without an evaluation. For example, Von Zedtwitz (2002) found that eighty per cent of research and development projects are not evaluated. In projects that are executed by students there is some inevitability to this neglect. Due to their limited timeframe, these projects often do not finalize the implementation phase. If they do implement an object design, there is little time left for positive effects to be realized and measured. Even in projects that are not strictly limited in time, evaluation is often neglected. When a project is reaching its finalization, other projects loom ahead, which attract or require attention from the current project members. For the project members it may be more interesting to dive into a new project than to take a step back and contemplate the ongoing one. However, evaluation and reflection are highly valuable.

Evaluations can be performed with four objectives in mind. First, evaluations serve the current BPS project by determining the results achieved and the improvements to be made. This is evaluation in a strict sense. In a broader interpretation of evaluation, for which we shall use the term ‘reflection’, it serves three other objectives.