The process of codesigning solutions with your residents may be iterative. This means you may need to repeat or combine the above methods so that your team and the process participants gradually refine the solution and build consensus.
“Refine” the solution means creating a more specific or exact plan of action. This can be as detailed as necessary to ensure that the plan is carried out, whether through measuring progress, creating specific instructions for municipal departments, or developing a particular budget initiative, law, decree or similar institutional mechanism to properly authorize the necessary work and hold municipal officials accountable. In the next step, we will discuss this implementation stage in more detail.
Note: As you engage the public and refine the solution, you will need to continually verify that your municipal administration has the legal or constitutional power to take the actions envisioned; if the actions are within the competency of your local authority, you will need to determine whether your authority can take the actions envisioned within the solution. This is where your team lead can liaise with your legal advisor and follow up with relevant points of contact in municipal departments (refer to the earlier discussion of buy-in and your stakeholder mapping exercise).
With regard to building consensus, your main goal is for residents to be aware of the process underway so that – if they choose – they can provide input into it. However, it will also require consensus within the municipal administration – for example, if the local council needs to approve the decision as part of the annual budget. Consider what kind of formal approvals or government process is required to go from initiative or proposal to implementation. If the priority and its determined solution will require a line item in the annual budget, your team will need to advise on or draft that individual budget proposal or initiative and may be called upon to help shepherd it through the relevant approvals process. The next step will address this in more detail.