The analysis of implementation: a framework and an example

The objective of implementation analysis is the minimization of the shortfull (in output terms) or overrun (in cost terms) from the outcomes which technical analysis predicts will occur from specified input combinations. It is useful to represent the feasibility of implementation, as companion data to information on technical feasibility, in terms of a weighted index which brings together the variables germane to implementation and to present this information essentially as a probability weighting which can be applied to alternative predicted technical outcomes. In this manner selection can be based on both technical and implementational considerations. Four general criteria, each in turn divided into a number of constituents parts, are defined and aggregated as an implementation index. These criteria are: availability of project resources; acceptability of the project to the target group; comparibility of the project with the implementing organization; and the evironmental feasibility of the project. The proposed index is then illustrated for a set of income support policy alternatives in Australia for which full technical data are available.