For years, health IT has been implemented with the goals of improving clinical care processes, health care quality, and patient safety. However, historically, plans to evaluate and optimize have taken a back seat to project work - or have been omitted altogether - at a tremendous loss to the health IT field. Health IT projects require large investments and stakeholders increasingly are demanding to know both the actual and future value of these projects. As a result, the field has moved away from talking about theoretical value to a place where we measure real value. We have reached a point where isolated studies and anecdotal evidence are not enough - not for our stakeholders nor for the health care community at large. Evaluations must be viewed as an integral piece of every project, not as an afterthought. A variety of resources can help to inform your evaluations and enable your health center to optimize the success of your health IT implementation.