How Prova works
Begin with the decision. Let the method follow.
Prova starts with the decision someone needs to make. Then it identifies the question, the information that may be used, and what each possible answer would change.
The result may be an answer now, a narrower claim, a changed plan, a focused need for more information, or a responsible decision not to measure more.
How the work moves
Start with the decision, examine the right information, and return with an answer that can be used.
Decision → Question → Information → Professional judgment → Next step
01
Decision
Name who will use the answer, when, and what it could change.02
Question
Define the important question and the standard it requires.03
Information
Read, retrieve, compare, and trace within the materials agreed for the work.04
Professional judgment
Challenge interpretation, keep uncertainty visible, and own the conclusion.05
Next step
Use the answer now or improve only what the next decision needs.
Claims and support
A claim becomes more trustworthy when another person can see the information behind it and understand its limits.
The same information may strongly support one statement, partly support another, and leave a third unavailable. Prova keeps those differences visible.
Illustrative support map
What the current material supports
Every claim the organization already makes, set against what is actually behind it.
| The claim | Support | What it rests on |
|---|---|---|
| 85% of enrolled participants complete the program | strong | Attendance logs and program files, 2022–2024 |
| Employer partners value the placements | partial | Three partner interviews; no wider follow-up |
| Participants leave with more confidence | thin | Described in staff notes; never measured directly |
| The program leads to lasting employment | absent | No contact with participants after they exit |
A responsible result
The work does not predetermine the most convenient answer.
A worthy program does not make every claim true. A limited claim is not a verdict on the program. The conclusion should go no further than the available information allows, and it should help the organization decide what to do.
Program logic
See which assumptions are supported by research and which ones your own program still needs to test.
Illustrative chain
Which links outside research supports—and which the program still needs to test
The same support scale, applied to the links between steps rather than to finished claims.
Structured placements of this length repeatedly show skill gains across a wide research base.
Research is mixed on whether skill gains convert to offers. The difference tracks the local labour market, not the training.
Few studies follow households this far, and none are from a comparable setting.
Measurement burden
Keep the measures that earn the time they take.
Measurement should be justified by a real decision, not by the assumption that more collection is automatically responsible.
Illustrative burden / value view
Which measures earn the time they take
Each measure the team already collects, placed by staff time and how far it moves a real decision. Both are the team's judgment—not a calculated score.
The same measures as a table
| Measure | Staff time | Decision value | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly attendance | 20 | 70 | Collected today |
| Employer feedback survey | 33 | 80 | Collected today |
| Exit interview | 54 | 68 | Collected today |
| Staff case notes | 66 | 58 | Collected today |
| Satisfaction star rating | 18 | 22 | Collected today |
| Intake demographics form | 42 | 34 | Collected today |
| Weekly activity log | 72 | 11 | Candidate to stop |
| Quarterly funder narrative | 90 | 20 | Candidate to stop |
| Six-month follow-up | 62 | 94 | Not collected today |
A practical first step
Bring the decision. Prova will help determine the useful work around it.
A short first conversation can clarify who needs the answer, when they need it, what information already exists, what the answer will be used for, and whether Prova should work with the team or review existing work independently.
Discuss a decision