MERL
On track — without rebuilding the results pack.
Outcomes, indicators, baseline versus target versus actual, evaluations and learning reflections sit next to the people and activities they come from. Numbers a funder can read. A learning log that does not vanish after the workshop.
How it is built
Framework on the programme
Outcomes and indicators live where the work lives — not in a logframe Word file that diverged six months ago.
Actuals next to the people
Target versus actual is visible in the same workspace as enrolment and activities.
Learning stays
What worked, what did not, what changes next — programme-level and organisation-wide, on the record.
Your close-out should not be a project
The old way versus IMP
The usual results pack
- Indicators live in a logframe Word file. Actuals live in a different spreadsheet.
- Learning happens in a workshop, then disappears into a trip report.
- The results pack is assembled under deadline pressure, every reporting cycle.
- Country sheets do not add up. HQ triangulates by heroic Excel.
The IMP results record
- Outcomes and indicators are loaded on the programme: baseline, target, actual.
- Evaluations — Baseline, Midline, Endline, Ad-hoc — with findings and recommendations.
- Learning log at programme and organisation level.
- Reports page: performance, consent coverage, enrolment, activity snapshots. CSV for boards and partners.
What is actually in the product
Live workspace capability — not a roadmap dressed as a feature list. The ceiling is published on the same page as the capability.
In the workspace today
- Results framework: outcomes → indicators with baseline / target / actual
- Programme evaluations: Baseline / Midline / Endline / Ad-hoc
- Findings and recommendations on the evaluation record
- Learning log — programme and organisation-wide
- Reports: performance, consent coverage, enrolment, activity snapshots
- Example outcome + indicator set to adapt at setup (IMP MERL)
- Expanded CSV exports and import support for legacy sheets
Honest ceiling
- Not automated impact attribution or an AI-written evaluation
- Not an advanced statistical / quasi-experimental analysis suite
- Not a replacement for independent evaluation judgement
Built to handle the messy reality
Set outcomes
The change you said you would make — on the programme, not in a side file that nobody updates.
Load indicators
What you will count, against what target, from what baseline. Visible on the programme page.
Record actuals
Results sit next to the people and activities they come from. Progress is not a separate tab.
Learn
Reflections stay with the period. Adaptive management is a log, not a workshop that evaporates.
What MERL looks like in practice
Coverage, not theatre. Baseline, target and actual on the same page.
- 01
Outcomes
The change you said you would make — on the programme.
- 02
Indicators
What you will count, and against what target.
- 03
Actuals
Results next to the people and activities they come from.
- 04
Learning
What worked, what did not, what changes next — kept.
From fire drills to a live record
MEAL lead
From
Reconciling three country sheets
To
One results view per programme
Funder advisor
From
Waiting on a formatted annex
To
A number with a trail
Country director
From
Surprised at quarter-end
To
On-track visible during the period
Questions buyers actually ask
- Does IMP replace independent evaluation?
- No. Advisory judgement stays human. IMP holds the operational and results record so evaluation has something solid to stand on. Ubu drafts. Humans Accept.
- Can we export for donor formats?
- Yes. Lists and reports go out to CSV for funders, boards and further analysis. IMP is the operational layer — it is designed to feed cleaner data into BI, not to displace Power BI.
- Is this on Core or MERL?
- People, programmes and delivery are IMP Core. Results framework, evaluations, learning log and expanded reports are IMP MERL. Request an invoice if you are unsure — the frozen catalogue is honest about the ceiling.
Explore more of IMP
The work stays when people leave
Don’t wait for the laptop to be on a plane. Brief the cycle the way you would brief a successor.
Already have the note? Tell us about this cycle — we price from that.