By Paula Whyte, Momentum, Ireland
When I joined the DIGIFABS project as a Quality Evaluator, I knew I’d be diving into a role that goes beyond checklists and reports. Quality evaluation isn’t just about ticking boxes—it’s about ensuring that every element of the project is meeting its goals, maintaining high standards, and continuously improving as we move forward.
DIGIFABS is all about empowering small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the food and beverage (F&B) sector to embrace digital transformation. The project is ambitious, involving multiple partners across different countries, each bringing their own expertise to the table. My role? To make sure everything we do is measurable, meaningful, and moving in the right direction.
What Does a Quality Evaluator Do?
As part of my role, I oversee the Quality Assurance (QA) and Evaluation process, which involves:
- Tracking progress – Ensuring that each work package (WP) is being executed according to plan and identifying any roadblocks early.
- Gathering partner feedback – A project is only as strong as its contributors, so getting honest & constructive input via online surveys from all 14 partners is key.
- Assessing impact – Looking beyond deliverables to ensure our work is making a tangible difference for the SMEs we aim to support.
- Recommending improvements – If something isn’t working as planned, we work as a team to tweak our approach and find better solutions.
Quality Evaluation in DIGIFABS: More Than Just a Report
Our evaluation approach is participatory, meaning all project partners play a role in assessing our progress. This ensures that quality isn’t just an afterthought—it’s embedded into everything we do.
With two evaluation periods completed, here are some key takeaways from 2024:
- Strong foundations: The project started with a well-prepared QA Plan, clear strategies, and effective evaluation tools.
- High satisfaction across work packages – 80% of respondents rated Project Management as “Excellent”, highlighting strong alignment with project goals.
- Collaboration matters: QA & Evaluation has seen great engagement, with partners actively contributing.
- Communication is key: Regular updates and check-ins are helping keep everyone aligned.
- Strong research phase – Investigation -WP3 saw 67% of partners rate it “Excellent”, showing solid progress in research deliverable
- Effective dissemination efforts – WP8 was praised for its strategy and bulletins, though some partners suggested refining engagement efforts.
- Challenges remain: The biggest hurdle is ensuring that all partners provide timely and detailed feedback, so we can identify issues and implement solutions quickly.
- The second Transnational Partner Meeting (TPM) was also highly rated, with top scores for agenda clarity, preparation, and facilitator communication. One interesting takeaway was a suggestion to add cultural elements to future meetings—a reminder that strong partnerships are not just about tasks and deadlines but also about fostering deeper collaboration & connection.
Why Quality Evaluation is Essential in DIGIFABS
A project of this scale has a lot of moving parts, and without structured evaluation, it would be easy to lose track of what’s working and what’s not. Quality evaluation acts as a guiding framework to ensure:
- Accountability – Every partner is clear on their responsibilities and deadlines.
- Efficiency – We identify delays or bottlenecks and address them early.
- Impact – The project doesn’t just deliver outputs but creates real change for SMEs.
DIGIFABS is an exciting and dynamic project, and my role as a Quality Evaluator allows me to work closely with partners to ensure we’re achieving the best possible results. As we continue, the focus will be on strengthening our evaluation processes, enhancing feedback mechanisms, and ensuring that DIGIFABS leaves a lasting impact on the F&B sector.
Looking forward to the next steps—quality is never an accident; it’s a continuous effort!
