Why is it interesting to evaluate COVID-19 support measures?

Even though the COVID-19 period may feel like a while ago, it is still important to evaluate the COVID-19 support measures. These kinds of measures involve significant amounts of money. For instance, the government has allocated 34 billion euros for TOGS/TVL and NOW. Large sums were needed to support businesses through the COVID-19 crisis without causing job losses, reducing the financial health of companies, and ensuring the continuity of the childcare sector. It is crucial that the government operates efficiently and effectively so that this money actually contributes to the intended goals. This is what Dialogic investigates.

What makes COVID-19 support or crisis measures different from other measures? How does this affect the evaluation?

COVID-19 support measures differ in several ways from regular schemes. These measures were developed at a rapid pace to promptly assist businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and related social distancing measures. This meant that ways to support businesses and families could not be thoroughly explored and compared. Additionally, it was not feasible to include numerous exceptions in the COVID-19 support measures. In bureaucratic terms, such schemes are referred to as 'coarse-grained', as they do not account for exceptions or special cases. Regular schemes usually have exceptions, making implementation more complex, costly, and time-consuming. These types of schemes are referred to as 'fine-grained'.

Moreover, during the COVID-19 period, there was much uncertainty about the crisis's impact on both businesses and society. Consequently, there was uncertainty about the duration of the COVID-19 support measures. Incorporating the experiences and insights from the COVID-19 period into future policy development could reduce uncertainty in the event of a future crisis. The evaluations conducted by Dialogic can thus make a significant contribution to future crisis schemes.

How did you approach the evaluation of COVID-19 support measures?

In our reports, we assess how these schemes were established, how they were implemented, the extent of misuse and improper use, and the lessons that can be drawn for future crisis schemes. We derive our insights through a blend of quantitative and qualitative research methods tailored to the research questions. For evaluations of the COVID-19 support measures, it was essential to engage with a wide range of users due to the schemes affecting a diverse group of businesses and the significant impact on this target group. Additionally, engaging with policymakers is crucial to understanding why they made certain policy choices, such as the necessity for the schemes to be coarse-grained to remain feasible in the short term. Gathering information from experts on the indirect consequences of the support measures was also important.

What does the overall picture from the 3 evaluations reveal?

Within a short time frame, very efficient and effective schemes can be developed and implemented as long as various stakeholders (implementers, policymakers, users, and involved sectors) collaborate intensively by sitting at the same (online) table. The COVID-19 support measures had to be swiftly introduced because many businesses would collapse if they could not generate income for longer than 3 weeks. Thus, the feasibility of the schemes became a critical factor in their design.

In traditional policy development, there is typically a focus on debating whether the policy is fair, with less attention paid to its feasibility; this aspect has only recently gained more attention. Through these 3 evaluations, we now know that considering feasibility does not compromise the efficiency and effectiveness of policies. However, this raises the question of how greater emphasis can be placed on feasibility during the formulation of regular policies.

Why is Dialogic proficient in evaluating policy measures?

As researchers with expertise in various policy domains, we can pose the right research questions for independent investigations. Furthermore, Dialogic has extensive experience with quantitative and qualitative research methods, enabling us to aptly tailor the mix of research methods to the research questions.

We have developed research methods that allow us to easily scale up the number of individuals from whom we gather information. This proved beneficial in the evaluations of the COVID-19 support measures involving numerous and diverse stakeholders. These research methods also contribute to consolidating insights from various stakeholders into a qualitative and independent report.