In a multidisciplinary firm characterized by offering innovative products and services, as we want Novadays to always be, it is more difficult than imaginable synthesize in a concise and clear way what we exactly do. Our consulting activity can not framed purely in what is often called strategic consulting, but neither in consulting and operational management, as both activities are performed in many of our projects. We aren't a market research company, but as some of them, we also perform large surveys. We are not a technology consulting firm, but we worked on projects with high technological content.
After reflecting on the subject, we conclude that the best option was to try to explain our work from the point of view of our customers and, after chatting with some of them about it, we build what we term the public policy cycle. Noting that course, we have opted to explain that our job is to help our clients to run this cycle, and so, achieve their objectives.
Thus, as shown in the graph, the different stages of the Cycle of Public Policy are:
(1) Study the environment: our client is a manager facing a responsibility more or less known by him, but one that requires further empirical and authoritative information before making decisions. That's why we do research that provides insight into the environment (to stakeholders, for example) and let us to extract ideas from others (you can see the post about it), study the impacts of future actions, studying the feasibility of them, etc.
(2) We plan policies: once you know the environment and possible actions are identified, the manager must deal with its planning. We often take part in the processes of strategic direction, developing the organization's strategic plan for a number of years. Other times, when we decide not to address this kind of project, we just design programs composed of several actions, as well as individual projects. In all cases planning is addressed from a comprehensive and multidisciplinary perspective: technical, economic, legal, organizational and technological.
(3) We implement policies: when it comes down to it, it is necessary to turn ideas and plans into realities and results. Usually, the administration has the means to execute those plans, but when not, Novadays offers consulting tools through technical management offices, in which a company team becomes part of the Administration team that executes the policy. We similarly elaborate specific consulting projects to support implementation in addressing issues such as organizing and training people, or the management of technology projects (so that the developments are made in line with the philosophy and objectives of the Plan and each action).
(4) We evaluate policies: by the end of the Plan or action, or in the middle of it, we evaluate plans, programs or utilities. Obviously, we did not assess those we have implemented, but some who have designed and many who have been made without our participation. Evaluate lets managers to deeply know all the results and impacts of their actions (and, often, put them in value) and to terminate the cycle of public policy and start again with new ideas and actions.
