The Birth of a Doing Business Report

November 14 was my due date: I'm supposed to deliver my first baby. It is a girl. Nothing has happened so far. Looking back over the past 9 months, I'm wondering about other events in life that take about the same time and go by (too) fast. A graduate program for example. Or the Doing Business report cycle.

Early January of each year, Doing Business sends out surveys, one for each of the 10 topics, to our 6,700 local experts in 181 economies around the world.

Local experts or 'respondents' as we call them, are asked to return the completed questionnaire 3 weeks later, towards early February. Some do it immediately, others need more encouragement. All 6,700 experts share their expertise for free, "pro bono", knowing their work- through the publication of the Doing Business reports, helps to inspire governments to reform business regulations and cut red-tape.

From mid-January through February and early March, about 45 Doing Business team members, based in Washington DC, make enormous efforts to collect as many completed surveys as possible, by calling the local experts, emailing, faxing, text messaging and sending 'friendly reminders', more than once... At any time of the day and night, calls are being made in Russian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Arabic and many other languages. Every country in the world that changed its dialing code, adopted a new currency or changed flags is being 'tracked'.

Towards the end of March, the analysis of the data is in full swing: ongoing reforms are being verified, data checked, time and again, to make sure the most accurate and updated information is published in the next report. The World Bank's Doing Business offices are turned into Call-Centers. Open 24-7.

Around the same time, there is a constant 'va-et-viens' of team members traveling to the most remote corners of the world: colleagues who stayed in Washington, DC get to taste candies from Palau and Vanuatu, raisins and nuts from Afghanistan and fresh bread from St Vincent. Every year, we visit about 1/3 of the 181 economies the report covers. Name a country, we've been there. We typically go for about a week and visit local company and property registries, courts, local experts, and increasingly also government representatives.

Data verification continues until the end of June when all data are closed and the rankings being calculated. By that time, we also know which countries have reformed the most. In July and August, the report is being written and tables and figures prepared. Designers get a chance to show off their creative talents.

Towards the end of August, the report has gone through a few rounds of internal review and is now ready to go to the printers. The day the report is sent out for printing, we party like there is no tomorrow. The next day, our focus shifts towards preparing the launch of the report, which happens every year around mid September: 9 months after the new surveys were finalized.

The days leading up to Launch Date, a record amount of media interviews take place: some live, but most through telephone, radio, TV and video-conference. A proactive media campaign pays off. Last year's report brought in close to 4,500 media articles, and this year's Doing Business 2009 report is on track to exceed that level.

And what happens after launch date for the remaining 3 months of the year?

From end of September through October and November, Doing Business team members travel on roadshows to disseminate the report's findings. New ideas are being developed, case studies written and new surveys developed. By mid December, just before the year-end exodus, 10 new surveys are ready, waiting to be sent out early January. And the cycle starts again.