The DoView Handbook
DoView Planning and Practical Outcomes Theory Handbook
DoView Planning and Practical Outcomes Theory Handbook: 100+ Innovative, Integrated Tools for Solving Key Issues in Planning, Implementation, Contracting, Measurement, Evaluation and Reporting (for Humans and AI Agents). Duignan, P (2025).
The new visual planning for organizations, initiatives, policies, research, strategy and AI agents.
If you can’t find a tool here to answer one of your questions about planning, implementation, measurement and reporting, contact us and we will create a new tool that answers your question. We want to provide the ultimate free guide to dealing with such issues.
All of the tools below are from the book the DoView Planning and Practical Outcomes Theory Handbook: 100+ Innovative, Integrated Tools for Solving Key Issues in Planning, Implementation, Measurement, Evaluation and Reporting (for Humans and AI Agents). Duignan, P. (2025).
Part A: The Steps in DoView Planning
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Five Steps | Tool A1: The Five Steps in DoView Planning | How can DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams be used for any government, corporate, nonprofit or community organizational or initiative planning? |
| Government Cycle | Tool A2: Government Planning, Implementation and Reporting Cycle. | How can we conceptualize the government planning, implementation and reporting cycle? |
| Cycle Check | Tool A3: Assessing a Government's Planning, Implementation and Reporting Cycle | How can we use the government planning, implementation and reporting cycle to check a particular government's planning process? |
| Cycle Use | Tool A4: Using DoView Strategy Diagrams in the Government Planning Implementation & Reporting Cycle | How can DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams be used at each point in the Government Planning, Implementation and Reporting Cycle? |
| Governance | Tool A5: Questions Politicians, Boards, CEOs, High-Level Management and Monitoring Agencies Need Answered Explainer | How can politicians, boards and CEOs use DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams to ensure effective governance and high-level management? |
Part B: DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagrams
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Evolution | Tool B1: Evolution of Use of Visual Models in Documents and Tools Used in Planning, Implementation and Reporting Explainer | How are the tools for planning and action evolving over time (the advent of visual drill-down strategy/outcomes diagrams)? |
| Shared Thinking | Tool B2: DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagrams as 'Shared Thinking Tools' Explainer | How should we think about the introduction of strategy/outcomes diagrams into planning work ('shared thinking tools')? |
| Roadtrip Demo | Tool B3: A Roadtrip Shown as a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram Example | What is the general way in which DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams are constructed? |
| Archery Example | Tool B4: 'Archery Initiative' DoView Strategy/ Outcomes Diagram Example | Is there a simple example of a DoView strategy/outcomes diagram that can be used? |
| Layering | Tool B5: Breaking Up DoView Strategy/ Outcomes Diagrams Into Drill-Down Layers | What is the best way of structuring DoView drill-down strategy/outcomes diagrams? |
| Interactive Example | Tool B6: A Real-World Interactive Drill-Down DoView Strategy/Outcome Diagram Example | What Does a Real-World Interactive Drill-Down DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram Look Like? |
| Drawing Rules | Tool B7: DoView Drawing Rules | What are the rules you should use to make sure a DoView strategy diagram is fit-for-purpose for planning? |
| Conventions | Tool B8: Conventions for Representing DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagrams. | Why don't DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams show all causal links? |
| Box Features | Tool B9: Features of Boxes That can be Included in a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram or Outcomes Framework. | What types of boxes can be included in a DoView strategy/outcomes diagram or outcomes framework? |
| Strategy Selection | Tool B10: Initiative or Policy Strategy Selection. | Which strategies should government or nonprofits select to achieve their outcomes and include in DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams? |
| Collateral | Tool B11: Collateral Typically Accompanying a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram. | What collateral is usually produced around a DoView strategy/outcomes diagram when doing DoView Planning? |
| Diagram Types | Tool B12: Four Types of DoView Strategy/ Outcomes Diagrams With Differing Evidential Status | How do DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams differ in terms of their evidential status? |
| Foresight | Tool B13: DoView Strategy Diagrams Helping to Extend Strategic Foresight Explainer | How can the range of your strategic foresight be lengthened by using a DoView strategy/outcomes diagram? |
| Define Outcomes | Tool B14: Defining an Initiative's Outcomes Explainer. | How can you use a DoView strategy/outcomes diagram to clarify what an organization or initiative's 'outcomes' are? |
| Non-Quantifiable | Tool B15: Including Currently Non-Quantifiable Steps and Outcomes in Strategy/ Outcomes Diagrams & Outcomes Frameworks | Why should you allow an initiative to have currently non-quantifiable outcomes? |
| No Silos | Tool B16: Do Not Silo Steps Under Outcomes Explainer. | Should steps (strategies, projects, activities) be siloed under individual outcomes? |
| Outcome Limits | Tool B17: Effects of Limiting the Number of an Agency or Initiative's Outcomes Explainer. | Should the number of outcomes for an agency, provider, policy, organization or initiative be limited? |
| Multiple Sets | Tool B18: How an Initiative Can Deal With Multiple 'Outcomes Sets' Too | How can an organization or initiative deal with meeting multiple outcomes demands from different control agencies, purchasers/funders or other stakeholders? |
| Coordination | Tool B19: Multiple Organizations or Initiatives With Shared Outcomes DoView Diagram Coordination Tool. | How can cross-organization and cross-sector collaboration be facilitated for joined-up action? |
| Whose Outcomes | Tool B20: Determining Whose Outcomes - Citizen or Government's - The Rationales for Government Assistance Framework. | Whose outcomes should government planning focus on - citizen's or government's outcomes? |
| Integration | Tool B21: Politicians, Government Agency Business-As-Usual and Citizens' Outcomes Integration Tool. | How can you use strategy/outcomes diagrams to allow for politicians' outcomes, agencies' business-as-usual outcomes plus citizens' outcomes? |
| Citizen Maps | Tool B22: Representing Citizen-Experience Maps As DoView Strategy Diagrams Explainer. | What should be used to articulate citizens' outcomes (citizen-experience DoView strategy diagrams)? |
| What-If | Tool B23: DoView 'What-If' Planning. | How can planning best cope with rapidly changing strategic environments such as we are currently facing? |
| Pre-Approved | Tool B24: Pre-Approved DoView Subsection Pathways in DoView 'What-If' Planning. | Can you pre-approve your pathway through particular What-If DoView subsections in order to speed up implementation when under time pressure? |
| Tipping Point | Tool B25: Risk Estimation and Acting Before the Tipping Point Prevention Window Has Closed Explainer. | How does tipping point risk management differ from non-tipping point risk management? |
Part C: Priority Setting and DoView Visual Alignment
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Setting Priorities | Tool C1: Setting Priorities Onto a Strategy/ Outcomes Diagram | How can agencies, organizations and initiatives set their priorities using DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams? |
| Priority Comparison | Tool C2: Traditional Strategic Planning Priority Setting Versus Using a DoView Strategy/ Outcomes Diagram | What is the most transparent way of communicating your priorities within a strategic planning process? |
| Visual Alignment | Tool C3: DoView Visual Alignment | How can agency, provider, policy, organisation or initiative deliverables be aligned with outcomes (‘Line-of-Sight Alignment)? |
| Large-Scale Alignment | Tool C4: Large Real-World DoView Visual Alignment of Strategies/Projects/Activities Onto Higher-Level Steps/Outcomes Example | How is DoView Visual Alignment scalable to large real-world organizations, providers, policies and initiatives? |
| Baseline Review | Tool C5: Baseline Review Undertaken Against a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram | What is the best way to make sure a 'baseline' review is consistent with overall strategy? |
| Alignment Representation | Tool C6: How to Represent Outcomes and Outputs/Deliverables in Order to Determine Alignment | When outcomes and outputs (deliverables) are shown separately in a report, can the alignment between them be established? |
| Grouping Risks | Tool C7: Outputs/Deliverables Groupings Hiding Links Between Individual Outputs and Outcomes Explainer. | How can grouping outputs/deliverables obscure the link between outputs and higher-level outcomes? |
| Homogeneous Groups | Tool C8: Problem with Measurement- Homogeneous Output (Deliverable) Groups Obscuring The Links Between Individual Outputs and Outcomes Explainer | What are the implications of requiring that output groups (e.g. output groups/classes) can be measured in similar ways (called homogeneous output groups/ classes)? |
Part D: Indicators and Specifying Deliverables
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Framework | Tool D1: DoView Planning Framework (Outcomes System Components/Building Blocks Diagram) | How can we conceptualize the relationship between strategy, alignment, deliverables, indicators, performance improvement, evaluation and value for money within an 'outcomes system'? |
| Terminology | Tool D2: Strategy and Outcomes System Terminology | How can you refer to the same component in strategy, planning and implementation work if people call them by different names? |
| Diagram Use | Tool D3: Where DoView Diagrams are Used Within the DoView Planning Framework | How can the building blocks of any outcomes system be undertaken by using DoView diagrams? |
| Architecture | Tool D4: The Role of Outcomes Architecture in the Design of Planning, Implementation, Measurement and Reporting Systems | What is outcomes architecture and why is it important for all planning, implementation, measurement and reporting? |
| Indicator Mapping | Tool D5: Putting Indicators Onto a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram | What is the easiest way to identify an agency, provider or initiative's indicators (KPIs and higher-level) and understand the level they are being struck at? |
| Good Indicators | Tool D6: Good Indicator Checklist | What makes a good indicator for an organization, agency, provider, policy or initiative? |
| Good Targets | Tool D7: Good Targets Checklist | How is it best to set targets for an organization, provider, policy, strategy or initiative? |
| Indicator Inventory | Tool D8: Organization or Initiative Indicator Inventory | What is the best way of organizing of an initiative or organization's indicators? |
| KPI Suitability | Tool D9: Deliverables, Outputs and KPIs Suitability Checklist | What types of indicators should be included in deliverables (e.g. outputs or KPI) lists? |
| List Review | Tool D10: Developing or Reviewing an Indicators, Deliverables, Outputs or KPIs List | How can you develop or review a list of deliverables or indicators (e.g. outputs or KPI) list? |
| Proxy Assessment | Tool D11: Proxy Indicator Level-Assessment Tool | How can you know how good a 'proxy' or 'surrogate' indicator is? |
| Tidy Sets | Tool D12: Suspiciously Tidy Indicator Set Explainer. | Is there any advantage in indicator sets being 'tidy' (for instance, five indicators grouped under five outcomes)? |
| Non-Output Indicator | Tool D13: Search for the Non-Output Controllable Indicator Explainer. | Is it always sensible to search for a 'non-output controllable indicator' to use as an accountability? |
| Index Use | Tool D14: When an Index Should be Used Checklist | When should you use an index (one figure summarizing two or more indicators) to report on outcomes? |
Part E: Funding, Contracting, Delegation and Implementation
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Reporting Types | Tool E1: Types of Reporting and Accountability a Control Agency or Funder Can Require From an Initiative. | What are the different types of reporting and accountability a control agency or funder might require from an initiative? |
| Contracting Types | Tool E3: Types of Contracting or Delegating for Outcomes or Outputs | What is the best way of contracting or delegating for outcomes? |
| Contract Risks | Tool E4: Contracting or Delegating For Outcomes Risks Checklist | How can we identify and attempt to manage the risks around contracting for outcomes? |
| Outcomes Proof | Tool E5: How an Agency, Provider, Policy, Organization or Initiative Can Prove it is Managing For Outcomes, Not Only Outputs | How can an agency or provider prove that it is managing for outcomes not just outputs? |
| Outcomes Contracting | Tool E6: DoView Outcomes-Based Contracting using a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram in Supplier/Provider Contracts | What is the best way of ensuring that deliverables in a supplier/provider's contract is aligned with higher-level outcomes? |
| Assist/Assess | Tool E7: When to Include an 'Assist' plus an 'Assess' Mode in Contracting Checklist | When should an 'assist' in addition to an 'assess' mode be used in contracting? |
| Funding Mapping | Tool E8: Showing Funding Allocated to Agencies/Suppliers/Providers on a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram | How can we better communicate the amount of money that has been allocated by a purchaser/funder for different purposes? |
| Amalgamation Risks | Tool E9: Delegating Resourcing Trade-Offs When Amalgamating Agencies Risk Checklist | How agencies being amalgamated by politicians/governance impact on their control of where resources get focused? |
| PPP Suitability | Tool E10: Public Private Partnership (PPP) Suitability Checklist | When are Public Private Partnerships (PPP) a good idea? |
| Social Investment | Tool E11: Suitability of a Social Investment Approach Checklist | How can we get funding today for fixing social problems which will cost government in the future (social investment)? |
| Social Bonds | Tool E12: Social Bond Suitability Checklist | How can we get funding for fixing social problems which does not come from government expenditure (social bonds)? |
| Action/Development | Tool E13: When Community Action Should Be Used Versus Community Development Checklist. | What are the different ways government can contract for community mobilization (community action versus community development)? |
Part F: Performance Improvement
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Performance Improvement | Tool F1: Using a DoView Strategy/ Outcomes Diagram for Performance Improvement. | How can an organization, agency, provider, policy or initiative's performance be improved? |
| Implementation Evaluation | Tool F2: Independent Parallel Implementation Evaluation | How can an organization, agency, provider, policy or initiative's performance be improved? |
| Action Planning | Tool F3: Group Action Planning for Implementing Multiple Similar Services or Initiatives | What is the most efficient way of getting a number of similar initiatives to improve their implementation and performance? |
| Benchmarking | Tool F4: When Benchmarking is Appropriate Checklist | How can we compare the performance of different agencies, providers or initiatives (benchmarking)? |
| League-Tabling | Tool F5: When Public League-Tabling is Appropriate Checklist | When should public league-tabling be used as a way of encouraging organizations, agencies, providers, policies or initiatives to perform better? |
| Evidence Embedding | Tool F6: Embedding Evidence in DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram Templates | How can we use DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams to get initiatives to do evidence-based practice? |
Part G: Evaluating Implementation, Process and Impact
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Evaluation Types | Tool G1: Types of Evaluation Mapped Onto the DoView Planning Framework DoView | What are the different types of evaluation for evaluating whether an organization, agency, provider, policy or initiative 'works'? |
| Strategic Evaluation | Tool G2: Strategic Evaluation Approach. | How should we determine what evaluation questions to ask in regard to an individual initiative (strategic evaluation)? |
| Component Eval | Tool G2a: Evaluating Individual Components or Streams Within an Initiative or Program | Should we be evaluating initiatives and programs or components or streams within overall initiatives? |
| Research Planning | Tool G3: Strategic Research Planning | How should we determine what research questions to ask in any research domain (strategic research planning)? |
| Evaluation Lifecycle | Tool G4: Different Types of Evaluation Over an Initiative's Life-Cycle | In which parts of an initiative's life-cycle are different types of evaluation used? |
| Impact Needed | Tool G5: When Impact Evaluation Is Needed Rather Than Just Measuring High-Level Outcome Indicators | When do you need to do impact evaluation rather than just measure high-level outcome indicators? |
| Generic Questions | Tool G6: Generic Evaluation Questions List | Is there a set of generic evaluation questions you can use to evaluate any organization, agency, provider, policy or initiative? |
| Question Mapping | Tool G7: Mapping a Set of Evaluation Questions Onto a Strategy/Outcomes Diagram | How can you assess the level at which a set of evaluation questions is struck, its comprehensiveness and if there are any duplicate questions? |
| Impact Alternatives | Tool G10: When Purchasers/Funders or Control Agencies Should Consider Alternatives to Impact Evaluation Checklist | Should purchasers/funders or control agencies insist that funded initiatives always have an impact evaluation? |
| Design Types | Tool G11: Impact Evaluation Design Types | What are the impact evaluation design types you need to consider when planning an evaluation? |
| Suitability Check | Tool G12: Impact Evaluation Suitability Check | How can you select an impact evaluation design based on its appropriateness, feasibility, affordability and credibility? |
| Worked Example | Tool G13: An Archery Project Impact Evaluation Suitability Check Example | What is a worked example of doing an impact evaluation suitability check for an initiative? |
| Success Rubric | Tool G14: Developing an Evaluative Rubric/ Success Criteria Using a DoView Strategy Diagram | How can 'success' be summarized from different outcome areas (success criteria and rubrics)? |
| Pilot vs Rollout | Tool G16: Full Initiative Roll-Out Versus Piloting Evaluation Explainer. | How can you best evaluate the impact of an initiative that consists of a large number of similar initiatives? |
| What Works | Tool G17: When 'What Works' Comparisons Between Initiatives Are Appropriate Checklist | Should purchasers/funders and control agencies compare initiatives only on the basis of 'what works'? |
| Economic Eval | Tool G18: Suitable Types of Economic Evaluation Based on Available Effect Size Information | What are the ways in which value for money (including cost-benefit analysis) can be assessed based on what 'effect size' estimates are available from impact evaluation? |
| Discounting | Tool G19: Relationship Between Discounting and the Ease of Intervening Explainer. | Why should we take into account changes in the ease of intervening over time when discounting in cost-benefit analyses of an initiative? |
| Data Collection | Tool G20: Evaluation Data Collection Types | What type of data collection should you use when evaluating an organization, provider, policy or initiative? |
| Protect Morale | Tool G21: How to Protect Morale in Community Programs Checklist | How can morale and social optimism be protected when experimenting with community mobilization initiatives? |
| Problem Cycle | Tool G22: Social Problem Solving Cycle | Why do social problems continue to exist despite politicians and stakeholders wanting to solve them? |
| Strategies Continuum | Tool G23: The Social Problem Strategies Continuum | What is the continuum of actions we can take within the different strategies used to work on social problems? |
| Cycle Questions | Tool G24: Priority Types of Evaluation at Each Point in the Social Problem Solving Cycle | What evaluation questions should be asked about an initiative at each point in the 'social-problem solving cycle'? |
| M&E Plan | Tool G25: DoView Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Plan | How can you build a DoView Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Plan? |
Part H: Reporting
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Results Reporting | Tool H1: Reporting Indicator and Evaluation Results Back Against a DoView Strategy Diagram | How can you communicate indicator and evaluation results within the wider strategic picture? |
| Impact Reporting | Tool H2: Including Impact Information in Indicator Reporting | How should you deal with the attribution problem when reporting on not-necessarily controllable indicators (outcomes)? |
| Balanced Scorecard | Tool H3: Deriving a Balanced Scorecard Format From a DoView Strategy Diagram | How should you deal with the attribution problem when reporting on not-necessarily controllable indicators (outcomes)? |
| RBA Format | Tool H4: Deriving Results-Based Accountability (RBA) Format From a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram | Is Results-Based Accountability (RBA) compatible with the DoView Planning approach? |
| ILM Complement | Tool H5: Complementing an Investment Logic Map (ILM) With a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram | How can the use of an Investment Logic Map (ILM) be enhanced with a DoView strategy/outcomes diagram? |
Part I: Embedding the Use of DoView Planning
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| Intro Steps | Tool I1: Steps in Introducing DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagrams and DoView Planning Into an Organization, Initiative or Sector | What are the steps in progressively introducing the use of DoView Planning and DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams into planning, implementation, measurement and reporting? |
| Doc Integration | Tool I2: How To Put a DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram into Existing Planning and Reporting Documents | How can DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams be introduced into existing planning and reporting documents? |
| Workflow Change | Tool I3: Changing the Work Flow of High-Level Strategists, Managers, Politicians and Board Members To Facilitate Them Using DoView Planning Explainer | How should the workflow of high-level strategists, managers, politicians, and board members change to take advantage of strategy/outcomes diagrams and DoView Planning? |
| Room Setup | Tool I4: How to Set up a Room For Interactive DoView Strategy/Outcomes Diagram Work | How should you set up a meeting room for serious interactive DoView strategy/outcomes diagram work? |
Part J: Using AI for DoView Planning and DoView Planning for AI
| Topic | Tool | Question Answered |
|---|---|---|
| AI Outcomes | Tool J1: Areas Where Outcomes Theory and DoView Planning May Apply to AI Agents Explainer | In what way does DoView Planning and outcomes theory apply to what AI systems do when they act in the world? |
| AI Management | Tool J2: Five Step DoView AI Management | How can DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams potentially be used to build AI agents and systems? |
| AI Acceleration | Tool J3: Using AI to Speed Up DoView Planning | How can AI be leveraged to speed up DoView Planning? |
| DoView Prompts | Tool J4: Using DoView Prompts as a Complement to Everyday Language Prompts for AI Systems and Agents | How can could DoView strategy/outcomes diagrams potentially be used to improve AI prompting? |