Time is perhaps the most important factor in successful implementation and relates to and overlaps with the deployment of human resources and funds (described in sections 3.1 and 3.2). Time is needed to prepare the feedback loop, develop its materials, request and analyze feedback, conduct dialogue and take action. Budget time for collecting, analyzing and consulting with the public on their priorities before those priorities are submitted and used in the formal decision-making process. How can you accurately and realistically estimate how much time you will need for each step in the process?
Start with the timelines of the decision-making process that the feedback loop will contribute to: When will a final version of public priorities be needed? Then work backwards. If the budget is drafted and deliberated in October, then priorities must be in hand by August or September. How long will it take to design public engagements (data collection and dialogue)? How long will it take to implement them? At what points will you issue updates to the public? See Annex IV for examples of real feedback loop implementation timelines from local authorities in four countries.
- Institutional or bureaucratic deadlines: There may be a specific window of time when feedback can be used for budgets, plans and strategies. These may be legally or administratively determined deadlines.
- Time to complete tasks: Consider the time in work hours that staff and other team members will need to complete specific tasks. Also, when designing public engagements, you’ll need to consider the time needed by members of the public to respond to feedback.
- Consider intervening events or deadlines and the flexibility of your institution: Is there a major event or holiday coming up that may impact the ability of your team to meet planned deadlines? Do department heads or senior officials tend to require strict adherence to deadlines, or are timelines more flexible in practice? Consider your past experience with public outreach when drafting timelines: How long does it usually take for you to organize public events or rallies? When you campaigned for election, how long did it take to meet with 100 or 200 residents?
- Narrow the scope of your data collection and analysis: If you are concerned about timelines or cannot secure support from enough stakeholders, reset your expectations and redefine your data collection goals. When narrowing the scope, however, keep in mind who will now be left out, and assess this in light of power dynamics and do-no-harm principles. Consider the following ways you may be able to narrow the scope, if needed:
- You can’t reach the whole community: Target certain groups. Consider narrowing the scope to a particular neighborhood or an underrepresented or marginalized group, such as youth, people with disabilities or women entrepreneurs. The population will be smaller, and you can likely contact youth centers, universities, business associations or other organizations to assist in your outreach efforts.
- Reduce the geography: If the local authority is responsible for an urban core and a number of smaller villages and more rural areas, consider narrowing your data collection to one or fewer villages or areas.
- Reduce the scope of the problem or focus of the analysis: Instead of tackling all discretionary spending in the local budget process, consider only a portion. For example, focus on more straightforward and visible maintenance challenges, such as parks, garbage collection or sidewalks.