Barcelona Principles 4.0

Introducing the refreshed Barcelona Principles 4.0

Welcome to the fourth iteration of the Barcelona Principles – our industry’s global articulation of what best practice in communication measurement and evaluation should incorporate.

Since inception in 2010, the Principles have provided a compass for all PR & comms practitioners, evaluation vendors and consultants, researchers and students to guide the evolving practice of PR and comms on how to measure and evaluate its work in a meaningful, transparent, and outcome­ driven manner.

Barcelona Principles 4.0 are an evolution, not a revolution. This is deliberate. They stand on the shoulders of the work of many comms giants. Hours of work and evolving thought have been put in to each iteration. The brief to AMEC’s global workgroup was clear: build on what works, refine what needs modernizing, and ensure the Principles remain relevant. They must be robust, easy to understand and globally appropriate. The Principles must align with AMEC’s other flagship resources – especially the Integrated Evaluation Framework (IEF), the PR Planning Guide and the Measurement Maturity Mapper (M3).

The Principles offer a ‘helicopter view’ providing general description of best practice. The AMEC Integrated Evaluation Framework provides the practical steps to apply the Principles’ guidance at any organization. AMEC’s Measurement Maturity Mapper is the industry benchmarking tool allowing comparison of measurement and evaluation programs against industry norms in multiple sectors.

In all cases these tools offer guidance and advice form an experienced, considered and unified voice of authority for how to produce impactful measurement and evaluation.