Professional Perceptions and Job Satisfaction of EU Fund Evaluators: A Cluster Analysis from the Czech Republic

Purpose: This article explores the job satisfaction, motivations and challenges of EU fund evaluators in the Czech Republic, an important yet under-researched professional group working with European structural and investment funds. It examines how professional experience, gender, age, employment sector and a sense of belonging to the evaluation community relate to professional identity and job satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach: A structured questionnaire was completed by 42 Czech evaluators: 30 employed in public administration and 12 working for private firms commissioned to conduct evaluations for public authorities. Cluster analysis and statistical tests were used to examine evaluator profiles and their relationships with the selected professionaland demographic factors. Findings: Professional experience and a sense of belonging to the evaluation community were the main factors associated with evaluators’ professional identity and job satisfaction. No significant associations were found for gender, age or employment sector. An apparent U-shaped relationship emerged between professional experience and satisfaction: evaluators with less than one year or six to seven years of experience were overrepresented in the less satisfied cluster, whereas those with more than eight years of experience predominated in the more satisfied cluster. Academic contribution to the field: The study addresses limited evidence on the factors associated with evaluators’ professional identity and job satisfaction. It focuses on Czech evaluators of EU-funded projects, whose work informs project selection and assessments of implementation. Professional identity and job satisfaction may shape their professional practice and decision-making, as they do in other occupations. Research limitations/implications: The small sample limits the interpretation of the findings. The results also reflect the Czech context of EU project evaluation and cannot be generalised to other countries or evaluation fields without further research. Some constructs, such as motivation, were assessed through a limited number of questions, which may not fully capture respondents’ understanding of them. Practical implications: The findings may help Czech public administration improve evaluators’ working conditions and professional training. Originality/significance/value: The study addresses the absence of comprehensive research on the professional identity and job satisfaction of Czech evaluators. Its findings provide a basis for further research and policy development and may inform broader research on the factors associated with professional identity and job satisfaction across occupations.