Deskreviews

Deskreviews are assessments conducted primarily through the examination of documents and data, without on-site visits or direct interviews. They are used to appraise a program, project, policy, or proposal based on available records, guidance, and stated criteria. The approach aims to verify compliance, feasibility, risk, and quality using written materials, followed by a recommendation about whether further assessment is needed.

Process commonly involves defining objectives and criteria, assembling relevant documents, conducting a formal review using checklists or scoring rubrics, identifying gaps or inconsistencies, and documenting findings in a report. The reviewer may propose actions such as additional data collection, on-site verification, or approval based on the desk review results.

Applications span multiple domains. In grant administration, desk reviews are used to pre-screen proposals and validate budgets and compliance. In procurement, they help verify bidder documents and eligibility. They are also employed in audits, compliance reviews, project management to assess readiness, and policy development to evaluate alignment with regulations and objectives.

Advantages of desk reviews include cost and time efficiency, scalability to large numbers of items, improved consistency through standardized criteria, and an auditable trail of decisions. Limitations include dependence on the quality and completeness of documents, potential to miss contextual or qualitative factors, and the need for clearly defined criteria and trained reviewers. In many cases, desk reviews serve as an initial or supplementary step, with field verification or deeper analysis pursued when warranted.