Policy design, impact assessment and evaluation

Ex-post Regulatory Evaluations

This course provides an introduction to the realm of Ex-post Regulatory Evaluations. It explains how to design, manage and monitor the evaluations, regardless of whether these activities are supported by EU funds. The course starts with an optional online session, offered for free, introducing participants to the basic principles standards and elements of Better Regulation (BR).

About this course

This course provides an introduction to the realm of Ex-post Regulatory Evaluations. It explains how to design, manage and monitor the evaluations, regardless of whether these activities are supported by EU funds.

It provides answers to the following questions:

  • How can evaluation activities be managed effectively and efficiently?
  • How can organisations ensure high-quality ex-post evaluations?
  • How can evaluation results provide the evidence required for decision-making, and help to improve policies and programmes?

Participants learn how to ensure high-quality ex-post evaluations, by drawing on good practices and lessons learned from implementing the European Commission BR Guidelines and Toolbox. The course provides insights into the pillars of sound evaluation design namely, the intervention logic, evaluation criteria, evaluation questions and the evaluation matrix. It  develops participants’ practical skills for managing evaluation studies and stakeholder consultation activities. Finally, it presents the latest developments, innovations and state-of-the-art methods in the theory and practice of evaluations.

You will learn:

  • How to manage an ex-post evaluation of a legal act.
  • What evaluation methodologies can be chosen to evaluate legislation.
  • What is state-of-the-art in ex-post evaluation of legislation and what the future looks like.

This course is led by experts who have decades of both research and practical experience in evaluation in the EU context and beyond. It combines interactive presentations, practical examples and quick group exercises.

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

  • Evaluate the pros and cons of different evaluation methodologies and tools, and select the ones most relevant to your case.
  • Commission and manage meaningful evaluations and ensure the proper use of results.
  • Integrate evaluation into the policy and programming cycle so it is actually used.
  • Recognise and identify what makes a good-quality evaluation.

You will be given the slides, as well as additional learning material and online resources, to help you apply your new knowledge and skills to your work.

This course on Ex-Post Regulatory Evaluations is one of the courses we are offering in the area of Better Regulation.

Are you also interested in taking a different course in this area? Please click below:

Strategic Foresight in Policy-Making | Regulatory Impact Assessments

Senior executives, policy consultants, and policy analysts, as well as legal advisors and legislative drafters working in government or parliamentary institutions in EU Member States or other countries that aim to incorporate evidence into the decision-making process, may find this relevant. Such institutions include:

  • Ministries and legislative committees
  • Better regulation committees
  • Centres for research and analysis
  • Agencies focused on reducing administrative burdens
  • Budget offices

Additionally, Public Sector consultants, Economists, and Economic Advisors may also benefit from this.

Project number: 2520302

Online Course
For this online course we make use of Zoom

Senior Project Officer
Ms Eveline Hermens
Tel: +31 43 3296259
e.hermens@eipa.eu

Discounts
EIPA member fee
EIPA offers a discount to all civil servants working for one of EIPA’s supporting countries, and civil servants working for an EU institution, body or agency

Who are the supporting countries?
Civil servants coming from the following EIPA supporting countries are entitled to get the reduced fee: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden.

For all other participants, the regular fee applies

Early bird discount
The early bird discount is not cumulative with other discounts or promo codes, except for the EIPA member fee.

Loyalty coupon
As a token of appreciation we offer all our participants a loyalty coupon for one of our future courses. The offer can be shared with colleagues and relevant networks. The coupon will expire one year after its release. This discount is not cumulative with other discounts, except for the EIPA member fee.

Confirmation
Confirmation of registration will be forwarded to participants on receipt of the completed online registration form.

Payment
Prior payment is a condition for participation.

Cancellation policy
For administrative reasons you will be charged € 50 for cancellations received within 7 days before the activity begins. There is no charge for qualified substitute participants.

EIPA reserves the right to cancel the activity up to 1 week before the starting date. In that case, registration fees received will be fully reimbursed.

A few days before the start of the course you will receive the log-in details for accessing the course materials. You can log in here.

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Our experts

Programme

13:15Registration of participants
13:30Welcome and self-presentation of the participants
Jordi del Bas, Evaluation expert, Senior researcher and Head of International Development, EU-Asia Global Business Research Center, Barcelona (ES)
Regulatory Ex-post Evaluation: The Framework
13:45Core definitions
In this introductory session, we will look at core concepts such as the definition of Evaluation and the Better Regulation Agenda. This session opens the conceptual landscape for the course and presents the basic terminology.
14:15What have we learned from evaluating regulatory measures in the context of Better Regulation?
We look at what works and where challenges remain in regulatory ex-post evaluation. This session sets the ground for the remainder of the course. As a starting point, we use the results of the quality assurance work done by the Regulatory Scrutiny Board (RSB) and lessons from the implementation of the BR Guidelines and Toolbox in Regulatory Ex-post Evaluations of the European Commission.
Regulatory Ex-post Evaluation: Design
14:45How to design an Ex-post Regulatory evaluation: the basic pillar
Most weaknesses in the quality of Ex-post Regulatory Evaluations originate in the design. In this session, we provide an overview of the pillars of a sound evaluation design (the intervention logic, evaluation criteria, evaluation questions and the evaluation matrix).
15:00Coffee break
15:15Designing the evaluation – the intervention logic
The design of the intervention logic is one of the most critical steps in the evaluation process. In this session we provide an overview of the key elements needed to design one which will provide a deeper overall understanding . This session will conclude with a group exercise on intervention logic.
16:15Designing the evaluation: evaluation criteria, questions and the evaluation matrix
This session describes the evaluation criteria and their scope. We look into evaluation questions, we explain their types, scope, and how to formulate them. We learn how to develop an evaluation matrix, through breaking down the evaluation questions into sub questions, deciding on indicators, and identifying data sources along with data collection and analysis methods.  We showcase good practices and highlight common pitfalls when formulating questions and developing evaluation matrices.
16:45Group exercise: Designing evaluation questions and developing an evaluation matrix.
17:30End of the first day
09:00Presentation of the results of the exercise: Joint discussion and debriefing. This session ends with a recap of the main practical aspects in designing an evaluation.
09:45How to design an Ex-post regulatory Evaluation: The Choice of methodological design
The range of options is, at times, overwhelming. This session gives an overview of different evaluation approaches, their key features, and how and why to use them. We discuss real-life examples to show the strengths and weaknesses of various evaluation approaches, and ways to select and apply them in practice. We conclude with an overview of reference sources you can draw on when looking for evaluation methods.
10:30Group Exercise: Choosing appropriate evaluation methods
11:00Coffee break
Regulatory ex post Evaluation: Implementation
11:15How to manage ex-post regulatory evaluations: practical tips and considerations (I)
In this session, we look at quality assurance mechanisms throughout the evaluation process, how to manage evaluation studies outsourced to contractors, and the different approaches to stakeholder consultation (open and targeted).
11.35How to manage ex-post regulatory evaluations: practical tips and considerations (II)
In this session, we continue working on stakeholder consultation. We also look at the quality of evaluation reports, discussing some of the challenges and good practices in producing high quality reports. We will also look into ways to ensure and monitor the use of evaluation results.
12:00Exercise on quality assurance.
12:30Lunch break
Regulatory ex post Evaluation: What is coming up
13:30What is new in Evaluation in the Commission
The Better Regulation Guidelines were revised in November 2021. Several new aspects were incorporated such as the new approach to the relevance criterion, which  includes foresight (“continued relevance”), and the incorporation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in evaluations and fitness checks. We put increased emphasis on the potential for simplification and burden reduction. Here we look at how to develop the table on costs and benefits identified in the evaluation and how to identify the potential for simplification and legislative burden reduction.
14:30Latest developments and innovations in evaluation. State-of-the-art and innovation in evaluating regulatory measures.
The OECD Regulatory Policy Outlook in 2021 highlighted that ‘traditional regulatory management tools, such as regulatory impact assessment (RIA), stakeholder engagement and ex post evaluation need to be adapted to help governments navigate the challenges and the opportunities brought by transformative changes.’ Regulatory interventions increasingly operate in volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) contexts. Such contexts result in less predictability, less control, unclear cause-and-effect relations and increasing confusion for organisations. New evaluation approaches are emerging to address this reality.
15:30Coffee break
15:45Latest developments and innovations in evaluation: case studies
In this session will look at practical cases of the application of these new approaches, which use real-time data, adaptive methods to evaluation, complexity theory and systems thinking.
16:30Wrap-up & evaluation
17:00End of the course

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Ex-post Regulatory Evaluations

24 Apr 2025 - 25 Apr 2025
Online
Register before: 17 Apr 2025

Simultaneous interpretation can be offered. Contact the programme organizer for more information and conditions.

 815 per attendee
 692 for EIPA members
Early bird register before: 27 Feb 2025

Discount policy

EIPA offers a discount to all civil servants working for one of EIPA’s supporting countries, and civil servants working for an EU institution, body or agency.

Who are the supporting countries?

Civil servants coming from the following EIPA supporting countries are entitled to get the reduced fee: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden.

For all other participants, the regular fee applies.

Early bird discount

For a limited number of training courses, EIPA offers an early bird discount.

For more information please contact us.

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Register before: 17 Apr 2025