The Canada Foundation for Innovation's outcome measurement study: a pioneering approach to research evaluation

In Canada and internationally, there is increasing interest in the accurate and meaningful measurement of the impacts of public R&D expenditures. The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), a not-for-profit foundation that funds research infrastructure, has developed an innovative method for evaluating research outcomes and impacts - the outcome measurement study (OMS). The OMS combines quantitative and qualitative evaluation approaches to assess outcomes of multidisciplinary research themes at individual institutions. This article describes the methodology, and highlights the key attributes and findings of employing the OMS approach. This methodology has proven to be effective as an evaluation and accountability tool, and as a learning experience for the CFI and participating institutions.