Version: January 25th, 2022.

ICN Agency Effectiveness Working Group (AEWG)

Agency Effectiveness Post-Covid-19 Project

Survey

Purpose

This questionnaire is part of the 2021/2022 ICN AEWG project “Agency Effectiveness Post-Covid-
19” which aims at identifying what changes were sought by competition agencies in order to
maintain or improve their effectiveness during the COVID-19 pandemic. This will also allow to
identify best practices and experiences that could be shared between ICN members to help them to
be better prepared to face future emerging situations such as a global pandemic. Answers to this
survey will form the basis for a report summarising the input provided by member agencies which
will be discussed in a future webinar.

Scope

The questionnaire focuses solely on competition agencies’ adjustments, changes or adaptations

implemented as a result of the pandemic. Questions related to agencies’ investigations or policy
actions during the pandemic are outside the scope of this survey, as these topics have been largely
covered by other ICN working groups.

Agency details

1. Please provide the name of the country/ jurisdiction: [Please type your answer here]

2. Please provide the name of the agency: [Please type your answer here]

3. Please indicate the size of the agency (if the agency has multiple functions, please consider
only the number of staff working on competition-related matters):

☐ 0–49 employees
☐ 50–99 employees
☐ 100–149 employees
☐ 150–199 employees
☐ 200+ employees

4. Please provide the agency’s contact person information for this project (name, title, email):
[Please type your answer here]

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I. Changes in work environments and work methods/operations.

5. Please indicate what of the following categories has the agency implemented as a result of
the pandemic

Yes No N/A Additional comments

WORK ENVIRONMENTS

The agency implemented a full remote ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
work environment additional comments]
The agency implemented a hybrid ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
work environment additional comments]
The agency has transited from a full ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
remote work environment into a additional comments]
hybrid one.
If yes to any of the above questions, ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
has the agency had to modify its rules additional comments]
or regulations to implement the
full/hybrid work environment?
Are the rules or regulations permanent ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
or transitory? additional comments]
If rules are permanent, is the agency ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
considering not switching back to the additional comments]
pre-pandemic work environment?
The agency continued with in person ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
operations with no virtual or remote additional comments]
work environments. If the answer is
yes, please explain the reasons or logic
behind this decision.
Other [Please feel free to share additional information on what changes in the agency’s work
environment were implemented].
AGENCY OPERATIONS/METHODS

The agency implemented new digital ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
procedures to ensure continuity of additional comments]
proceedings1
The agency implemented ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
virtual/remote dawn raids additional comments]
The agency implemented ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
virtual/remote systems for handling additional comments]
documents and information regarding
proceedings. If yes, please clarify if
these are internal for staff only, or
they also allow at some stages
interaction with external persons.
The agency implemented ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
virtual/remote sessions of its decision- additional comments]
making body (e.g. Board of
Commissioners)

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Proceedings cover any procedure carried out during the investigation, the trial like proceeding or decision
stage.
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The agency implemented ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any

virtual/remote hearings for additional comments]
investigations.
If yes to any of the above questions, ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
has the agency had to modify its rules additional comments]
or regulations to implement virtual
operations?
Are the rules or regulations permanent ☐ ☐ ☐ [Please feel free to provide any
or transitory? additional comments]
Other [Please feel free to share additional examples or information regarding the implementation of
virtual or remote operations at the agency]

6. If your agency implemented remote work environments, what were the financial or human
resources implications of this implementation? Please describe challenges identified, for
example, whether significant investments were required or if there was an impact on the
conditions of employees from the human resources point of view. [Please type your answer
here]

7. Did the agency implement new technologies or had to learn/train its staff with new skills (e.g.
artificial intelligence or digital tools for investigations) to meet the challenges arising from the
pandemic? If yes, please indicate what new technologies or skills were implemented. [Please
type your answer here]

8. If your answer to the previous question was yes, please indicate what benefits or
disadvantages the agency has identified from this implementation. [Please type your answer
here]

9. How has remote work changed the way in which the agency conducts its proceedings? How
does the agency ensure continuity of its proceedings (especially investigations) during the
pandemic? [Please type your answer here]

10. Has the agency implemented any new rules or criteria to improve its approach to case
handling, for example, by adjusting or setting up new priorities on certain markets or
conducts? [Please type your answer here]

11. Has the agency implemented any new rules or criteria to enhance internal case processing,
for example, to include statutory time limitations/suspensions or to adjust internal deadlines,
etc.? [Please type your answer here]

12. Has the agency implemented any new investigative tools as a result of the pandemic (e.g. IT
Forensics)? If so, please describe briefly what new investigative tools were implemented and
the reasons for this implementation. [Please type your answer here]

13. Did the pandemic have any impact (positive or negative) in the way in which the agency
cooperates internationally with other competition authorities during investigations? Please

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describe the impact your agency detected and how your agency responded/adapted to it.
[Please type your answer here]

14. What are the advantages and disadvantages that the agency has identified from
implementing remote work environments? If the agency has not implemented any, please
provide the reasons to not do so. [Please type your answer here]

II. Market studies, data collection and analysis

15. Explain whether the agency created any teams (e.g. task forces) to coordinate the response
to the pandemic? If so, please specify what were their main task and the challenges these
teams faced? How did they help the agency to respond to the crisis? Are these teams
permanent or transitory? [Please type your answer here]

16. Did the agency make any investments in human, financial or technological resources to carry
out studies, collect, review and analyse data from the markets affected by the pandemic?
[Please type your answer here]

17. If the agency made these investments, were these helpful to the agency in order to better
understand the markets affected by the pandemic and to deliver more effective decisions?
[Please type your answer here]

18. Did the agency identify any other means, besides investments, to better understand the
markets affected by the pandemic and/or collect relevant data? For example, by finding new
uses for traditional tools or by increasing cooperation with other bodies. [Please type your
answer here]

19. Did the agency launch any new market studies or sector inquires as a result of the pandemic?
If so, what was their impact in the operation of the agency, for example, did they require to
reallocate resources between projects or delay/suspend current ones to prioritize the new
one? [Please type your answer here]

III. Communication and engagement during the pandemic

20. Did the agency publish any strategies or documents to communicate its official law
enforcement position during the pandemic to the private sector, academia government and
the public in general? If so, what was the response to the document? Were any
innovate/creative/special communication strategies required to ensure a better
understanding from these audiences? What channels did the agency use to
communicate/disseminate the document (e.g. agency web page, social media, etc.)? [Please
type your answer here]

21. Did the agency identify specific stakeholders (e.g. business, academia, public in general,
government) with whom active engagement was needed to better respond to the pandemic?
How did the agency approach them? What were the key tailored made messages conveyed
to them? How were these messages received? [Please type your answer here]

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22. Did the pandemic provide the agency with opportunities to enhance its engagement with
these stakeholders? [Please type your answer here]

23. Has the agency established specific hotlines or mailboxes for complaints? If so, what was the
effectiveness of that communication strategy? [Please type your answer here]

IV. Legislative amendments to improve agency’s effectiveness during the pandemic

24. Did the agency submit or advocate for any legislative amendments to better respond to the
pandemic? [Please type your answer here]

25. If legislative amendments were enacted, please explain what these consisted of and how
they have been implemented by the agency. Indicate whether these have had effects in the
short term to improve the agency’s effectiveness, or whether these effects are expected to
be reflected more over the medium and long term. [Please type your answer here]

26. Were there any political strategies, legislative actions, or governmental actions proposed or
implemented during the pandemic that would have been counterproductive for the agency?
[Please type your answer here]

V. Reflections on and assessments of the pandemic

27. Has the agency made (or plans to make) any self-reflection or self-assessment exercise
related to its response to the pandemic?

28. If the agency has already conducted such an exercise, what were the main findings identified
regarding the effectiveness of the agency during the pandemic? Will these findings help to
shape the future actions of the agency? If so, in what way? [Please type your answer here]

29. Has the agency reviewed its strategic or work plans during the pandemic? If yes, please
describe how this was done and what factors were taken into account, and how this review
has impacted overall annual objectives? [Please type your answer here]

30. What are the most relevant lessons that the agency learned from this pandemic? Can these
lessons help the agency to be better prepared to face similar emerging situations in the
future? [Please type your answer here]