Dr. Gabe Sanchez on building a reputation in policy: be transparent, non-partisan, and professional

Evaluation Lab News

Posted: Jun 25, 2024 - 12:00am

Dr. Gabe Sanchez is one of the leading national experts on Latino politics and health policy. He has years of policy reports and evaluations under his belt. He is a Professor of Political Science and the Director of the UNM Center for Social Policy.

He stopped by the Policy Seminar last semester to give the students some tips on building a reputation as a reliable researcher and some best practices for using policy briefs to communicate to non-academic audiences.

Here are some takeaways from Dr. Sanchez:

Before you accept the contract, always do an initial landscape analysis. You need to know who the audience is, who this report is for, and who has the authority to use the findings.

Ask yourself if this work is possible and if you are being offered enough funds to complete the project.

When building a relationship with the client, let them know that the findings might not be what they want. Find out who is going to be upset by which results and why they would not support certain findings. This can possibly be addressed in the report.

When giving the final report, find out who will be present and prepare for any tough questions you might get.

In general, and when building your reputation, be transparent, non-partisan, and professional.

Keep a paper trail of all expectations and communication involving the project.

Stay professional and try not to take things personally. When necessary, take two deep breaths before answering tough or upsetting questions or remarks. And remember, at the end of the day, it is only a job, and you are being paid to do the work and to be professional.