A public sector research organisation was expanding their profile and presence with state government partners and had identified that many personnel within the agency did not have an awareness of the relevant state government issues.
FPL Advisory was engaged to deliver a seminar which provided a comprehensive overview of the Victorian Government.
Situation
A public sector research organisation was seeking to deepen their relationships with departmental personnel and elected officials. Building on their expertise in research and industry development with state government partners the agency wanted to ensure the full capability of the organisation was front of mind for policy and project development.
The project sponsor identified a number of internal barriers to the successful execution of this ‘relationship reset’ including a lack of staff awareness of the operating environment of the Victorian Government and their policy priorities and they had a role to play on future engagement, while preserving the strictly apolitical nature of the agency.
Action
FPL Advisory was engaged to provide advice on how these barriers could be addressed over the short and longer term. Our recommendation was to establish a ‘baseline’ information session for relevant staff to be followed by an engagement program and tangible action plan for them over the following months.
In concert with the project sponsor, FPL Advisory developed and delivered a bespoke seminar for the agency utilising our knowledge and insight of government policy decision making and the Victorian Government operating environment. This included an agenda and content for a two-hour seminar, call for questions in advance to attendees and delivery of the seminar in partnership with the project sponsor to an audience of 40 research scientists and corporate staff.
Outcome
The seminar was tailor made for the organisation and was able to provide the specific context of the organisation in the broader government landscape. The cohort of senior and mid-level personnel from the organisation also meant we were able to cover a significant number and range of questions and topics. Post-seminar feedback from the attendees was positive with an 85% Good/Very Good rating and feedback from the project sponsor 3 months after delivery was positive with a qualitative improvement of engagement activities.
FPL Advisory supports clients across many industry sectors to resolve risks, create opportunities and support government engagement.