Community relations

Limitations of Online Engagement If you have been following the evolution in stakeholder engagement in recent years, you’ve probably noticed that there has been a clear shift in mentality. What was once viewed as an obligation to comply with legislation or market pressure is now being embraced as opportunity to create value for the organization, its projects and/or brand – starting with more meaningful and productive relationships with key stakeholders.   This shift has also […]

Think twice before migrating your stakeholder engagement software   Most organizations that need to secure a social license to operate to ensure successful project delivery have long switched from Excel spreadsheets to stakeholder management software. But not all platforms are made equal. Some require you to take the time-consuming route of having to migrate just to access the latest version of the software – a route that can put your hard-earned data at risk. (This […]

Online engagement seems to be the new trend in the stakeholder engagement era. For many community stakeholders, it’s much easier to pick up a smartphone, read about the project, and share ideas or concerns online, right from home. Online communication also makes it easier for organizations to collect information from these otherwise silent stakeholders – whether it’s identifying multiple stakeholder groups in a high-density area through the comments posted on an engagement webpage, or validating […]

While stakeholder engagement has been ongoing business for organizations in mining, oil & gas and energy industries for over 30 years, to the broader business world, it’s now a concern for C-level executives in industries such as retail, consumer goods, transport, food and beverages, pharmaceuticals and more.   According to AccountAbility’s 1000 Stakeholder Engagement Standard: “Stakeholder engagement is the process used by an organisation to engage relevant stakeholders for a clear purpose to achieve agreed outcomes. […]

Distribution Network Service Providers (DNSPs) in Australia are facing a stakeholder engagement logjam thanks to the electricity pricing reform enacted by the Australian Energy Regulator (AER),  as suggested by the Energy Australia Network (EAN).   As the first movers, the Victorian DNSPs were required to submit Tariff Structure Statements (TSSs) to the AER for approval, to apply for from three to five years. The TSS requirement implies the broad engagement of all a DNSP’s stakeholders, […]

The Responsible Business Summit Europe (RBSEU), which recently took place in London, sparked debate about how we can transform the world while building great and sustainable businesses. I was inspired by sessions describing how companies are putting into practice processes to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and committing to the Paris agreement, and hope to pay that  inspiration forward just a bit, by writing about it here.   Understanding the SDGs and what […]