Is Public Sector Procurement for You?. Understanding the Public Sector Marketplace.
Enhancing public sector communications March 2009 Meredith Barker Public Sector Relationship...
-
Upload
victoria-washington -
Category
Documents
-
view
216 -
download
0
Transcript of Enhancing public sector communications March 2009 Meredith Barker Public Sector Relationship...
Enhancing public sector communications
March 2009Meredith BarkerPublic Sector Relationship Manager, Archives NZ
Archives New Zealand – Relationship Management Strategy
Why do we need a strategy?• the purpose of this work is to build new
relationships and strengthen existing ones with the public sector
• to raise awareness of the work Archives New Zealand does • to make sure we’re using the right tools to get our messages
out there.• feedback from stakeholders says we’re communicating well
but we want to do better
What’s the process?
• Workshops with internal and external stakeholders• Stocktake of communications to date:
– what has worked and what hasn’t both internally and externally
- evaluated who we’re talking, to how often, and whether our messages are being received
- new target audiences
What does it mean for the public sector?
• Stronger relationships between Archives New Zealand and its public sector stakeholders through:- targeted and timely communications- building relationships across organisations (information managers, CIOs, chief executives etc)
• A whole-of-organisation view to get messages across – not only bottom up but also top down
• Greater support in selling messages across organisations• The relationship management strategy is not a golden ticket,
we’re relying on you to communicate relevant information messages within your own organisations.
‘Selling’ messages within your own organisation
• The greatest threat to many projects is a failure to communicate
• No matter what our profession,
we must be able to communicate
effectively to succeed
Basic communication planning
• Keep it simple and stick to the basics:
- purpose: why am I doing this?
- objectives: what do I want to achieve?
- key messages: what do I need to say
- audience: who do I need to say it to?
- strategy: how will I achieve my objectives
- communication tools: how will I communicate this to my audience
- evaluation: what worked? What can I do better next time.
What’s the point - defining the purpose
• consider why you need to communicate something• take a step back and ask stupid questions• what would happen if you didn’t communicate your
message?• what are you going to gain by
telling people about the issue?
Objectives
• bottom line: what do I want to achieve?• keep your objectives simple and achievable – no more than
three or four• don’t set unrealistic goals
Audiences
• know your organisation• define exactly who you need to communicate with• internal or external audience (or both)• identify your allies and your enemies
Key messages
• what do you need to say?• keep messages simple, get rid of the jargon• put them in a context that people can understand• think about how they will be communicated internally vs
externally• put your messages in context for your audience, use real life
examples
The Strategy
• The ‘how’ – how you communicate, what, when• Methods for getting your messages across, intranet,
website, face-to-face, email • Timing is everything. Think about other factors, what else is
happening in the organisation and whether it’s the best time to communicate
• Sell the benefits of action vs inaction• Don’t reinvent the wheel - if it’s been done before and
worked, stick to it!• talk to other departments who have done similar projects,
find out what worked for them
Communication tools
• Keep them simple (for your sake)• Getting the right information to the right people at the right
time and in a useful format is just as important as developing the information in the first place
• Important considerations include:
- using technology to enhance information distribution
- formal and informal methods for distributing information – face-to-face meeting, bulk email distribution, intranet, website.
Identifying risks
• Identify potential risks early
• Agree how risks will be managed and how you will mitigate them
• Project risks vs organisational risks
Evaluation
• Pass or fail
• An important tool not only for measuring success but identifying project failures
• Use it as a learning opportunity