After having defined the indicators to be used in order to monitor the progress of the project and/or to evaluate the project, the principal aspects of the monitoring process have to be defined.
At the outset the data sources for each performance indicator should be investigated and defined. In most cases a reliable system for collecting the requisite data must be developed in a timely fashion. Many output indicators are derived from records kept by the Contracting Authority or/and its Contractor at project files (e.g. km of road constructed, number of people trained etc). For result or impact indicators, (e.g. increase in traffic flow of passengers/ vehicles/ freight one year after the construction of a new port), the Contracting Authority may need to collect data from external sources as well (e.g. the information system of the new port).
Next, the Project Manager should define how the data collected should be processed, initially interpreted and then presented to the Project Steering Committee, the Funding Agency and to other stakeholders. In case that the impact analysis is too complicated, assistance from outside experts should be asked.
It should be noted that in case of EU funded projects, the Contracting Authority is obliged to prepare and submit electronically two types of reports. The first one is being submitted every three months and is supposed to monitor the work and financial progress of the project. The second one is being submitted every month and includes only financial information/data for each subproject.
Templates of the above mentioned reports can be found at the official web site of Planning Bureau (http://www.planning.gov.cy – Structural Funds section – OPS).