Two blogs on impact theatre: 1) the problem; 2) a solution… juliankingnz.substack.com/p/navigating...

Evaluation systems built on VfI uncover and articulate real value, not just metrics. open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

#TrainNews: Te Huia have launched a survey on the future of Te Huia. Te Huia says this information will help to shape what Te Huia might look like in the future. MORE: yourvoicematters.waikatoregion.govt.nz/future-of-te...

I’m in awe of my friends who have achieved B Corp status, but we need more options. Which are you? A Corp: Altruistic – purpose before profit. B Corp: Benefit for all - business with conscience.  C Corp: Caring capitalist - profits, people, planet. D Corp: Divided-driven dinosaur.

Her: Have you watched Nobody Wants This? Me: No, is it about AI?

The big idea behind this framework is deceptively simple: social investments have value propositions, and if we can define the value proposition, we can evaluate how well it is being met. This simplicity carries profound implications… open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Impact theatre can divert NGOs away from their purpose and values. In this blog we lay out the problem. Next week, we’ll offer a way forward . open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Instant coffee isn’t a bad drink. Its only crime is the use of the name “coffee”. It should have a different name to avoid misleading. Similarly, “evaluator-free evaluation” may provide useful and valid analysis - it just shouldn’t use the name “evaluation”.👇 open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Just in case anyone wants to add Simeon or Luxons face to this for Thursdays strike

AI is super, super useful and I won’t be told otherwise.

Rather than making evaluators obsolete, I could see AI increasing demand for evaluation, but only if we get the mix of human and AI inputs right. Woe betide those who get the mix wrong…

Will AI make evaluators redundant? Or could it enable better, quicker, cheaper evaluation, boosting demand and making evaluators busier than ever? open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

This has been up for less than 2 weeks and is already my most read blog post of all 147 to date. It’s always the one you least suspect eh… open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Wow look at this street. There must be incredible productivity gains on this crucial economic route from Simeon Browns blanket speed increases. So safe, and so fitting at 50km/h!

Had to witness this for myself – it’s real, and even worse as seen from the footpath. (Context: these narrow back-streets had a community-supported 30kmh speed limit… but in mid-2025, were forcibly reverted to 50kmh by the current govt.) Dangerous, petty, ridiculous kneejerk vice-signalling, ugh.

The pipe dream of objectivity is alluring but doomed - the real choice is between making values explicit or hiding them under a rug. open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Goldilocks and the Three Criteria - not too specific, not too vague: just right. open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Value is more than a number, but the number travels halfway around the world while the full value story is pulling its boots on. Welcome to Episode 141 of Old Man Yells at Cloud... open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

There are some who believe the only real #evaluation is one that sums up an entire policy or program in a single number. I see genuine value in that number. But only if it’s used right. It’s not objective, nor precise. It doesn't count everything that matters. open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Ten Commandments for social cost-benefit analysis (#CBA) and social return on investment (#SROI). Coming up next. Subscribe so you don’t miss it. Also check out my discount offer! open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

In the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams talked about circumpolar cultures having over 200 different words for snow because it’s such a big part of their lives. Should evaluators have over 200 words for epistemic harm? I managed to think of 42… open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

#Realist #Economic #Evaluation: a new hybrid methodology with big potential… open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

For decades, Cost-Benefit Analysis has been central to how the U.S. makes regulations, weighing gains and losses to society. But as the political landscape evolves, will CBA emphasise cost minimisation over the wider public good, undermining its intended purpose?👇 open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Human judgement isn’t a flaw in the process - it is the process. Making good decisions that enhance public value in spending reviews👇 open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Sharepoint! MFA so effective even you can’t access your files.

Cost-benefit analysis, born out of an attempt to establish ‘objective’ standards by which policies could be deemed economically desirable or not, remains as subjective as any other evaluation method at our disposal. Still useful tho. My take: open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

A long black at Big White - or as they call it here…

This roller coaster is lame

Social investment: How do we determine “value” and who gets to decide? Summary of a panel discussion I had with Atawhai Tibble last year👇 open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

The zeitgeist moves so quickly sometimes it can be hard to keep up. However, I’ve sold the Tesla and am now riding a pushbike made from rescue vegetables.

“If we concentrated on creating value as much as we do on managing risk, what would that look like?” - and other interesting reflections from NZ’s Public Service Commissioner… www.publicservice.govt.nz/news/sir-bri...

Feels like pretty much every govt is Joey RN

Why does value for money matter? Like, why is it even a thing? open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

In 1915, Robert Frost Wrote of opportunity cost 110 years later, I Write on Substack and Bluesky About the art of making choices Given limited resources All shall be revealed tomorrow To get your copy, subscribe or follow!

Warm welcome to new subscribers! Here’s a quick post to bring you up to speed on my Substack topic… open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Actual footage of me every time I check the news

Coming soon, on open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Coming soon on Substack

Did you know that in health economics, there’s a paradox where extending life expectancy leads to higher long-term healthcare costs, with the implication that “killing patients is good value for money”?

VfM assessments often focus too much on the money and not enough on the value. We can address this problem by re-framing policies and programs as investments in value propositions (hence, “Value for Investment)... www.julianking.co.nz/wp-content/u...

The Gell-Mann Amnesia Effect applies to AI as much as to media coverage. We may assume the veracity of Perplexity’s or Claude’s answers to our questions, but pick a topic you’re nerdy about and quiz them on it. Very hit-and-miss.

2 years, 109 articles, 1,230 subscribers, 130,000 reads! I’ve unlocked my most-read, least-read, and three of my favourite articles from last year, topics ranging from social investment to evaluation, value for money, small business ownership and bike paths… 👇 open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

The Great North Road upgrade is a triumph for AT – whether the mayor likes it or not

Value for Investment, out in the world having impact from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. Join us in disrupting value for money assessment… open.substack.com/pub/julianki...

Made my very own Khaby Lame meme!

The disciplinary divide between evaluation and economics holds us back from making better resource allocation decisions. What if we could integrate insights from both disciplines? To address this question, I undertook some theory-building research… open.substack.com/pub/julianki...