ABSTRACT
The senior echelons of the various departments that national Eurocrats work for expect them to make sure their department’s view of the world is successfully presented when EU policies are being created (or implemented). To do this job well, Eurocrats need to know about the plans and intentions of ‘their’ Directorate-General at the European Commission early on in the policy process. Furthermore, they need to be able to sense where the Commission is heading with a particular proposal; assess the implications for their department in terms of costs and benefits for the domestic policy status quo; discuss these plans with their colleagues in other units within their own department or with colleagues with related or affected portfolios in other departments; involve external experts and write reports; and finally, determine their department’s position with regard to the specific policy issue at hand. Their socialisation on the job and their work routines are geared towards performing these tasks.
