Strategy Survival Guide
Strategy Survival Guide
Strategy Survival Guide
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
• What channels do we know don’t work?<br />
6. Timing:<br />
• How long will it take to change these opinions?<br />
• Are there logical opportunities on the calendar we can exploit?<br />
• When should we start?<br />
• When must we have achieved this attitude shift by?<br />
7. Plan: Using this information, what are you going to do, for whom and how?<br />
8. Evaluation: How will we know if we have changed their opinion?<br />
The answer to many of these questions may be clear. For others, it may be necessary to conduct research.<br />
In drawing up your communication plan the team should consult their departmental press office for any<br />
guidance they have produced on communication. Specialist advice for public sector organisations is also<br />
available from COI Communications.<br />
Drawing up a communications plan<br />
In Practice: SU Voluntary Sector Review<br />
The <strong>Strategy</strong> Unit’s report "Private action, public benefit", had a very diverse range of stakeholders<br />
across wider Government, the voluntary sector, education, savings bodies, sport and social clubs, and<br />
even housing associations.<br />
The wide media interest ranged from national media to specialist magazines covering the various<br />
sectors.<br />
The overall communications strategy for this project needed to address stakeholders’ needs from its<br />
launch to publication of the final report.<br />
Communications techniques allowed us to identify key stakeholders who were kept regularly updated<br />
on progress and consulted on key areas during the lifetime of the project. This included the press officer<br />
being able to update media on progress and explain reasons why the project was taking longer than<br />
originally expected – thus keeping criticism to a minimum.<br />
Some key points to note:<br />
1. Detailed briefing notes are vital for any launch. The Q and A must be exhaustive and must<br />
address sensitive issues.<br />
2. The launch strategy included a large number of briefing sessions to cover stakeholders and the<br />
media. This was extremely time-consuming but effective.<br />
3. Briefing small groups of the media helped to improve their understanding of the report –<br />
especially for non-specialist media - and resulted in measured and accurate reporting of the key<br />
recommendations. It also allowed specialist media more opportunity to delve into their areas of<br />
interest.<br />
4. The concentrated briefing of stakeholders also resulted in much more informed initial comment<br />
from them than might otherwise have been the case.<br />
5. This model has been followed with other SU reports and tend to show that the investment of<br />
time in preparing briefing notes and with stakeholders and the media is returned in better<br />
understanding and much more informed comment.<br />
6. However, this model is not always possible when Ministers are involved in the launch process.<br />
The time needed tends to make it impractical.<br />
7. Do not forget to plan for the dissemination stage post-launch. Activity should not stop the day<br />
after launch.<br />
An overall communications strategy was produced for the final report’s launch. We have left the<br />
actual text in place in the template wherever it is appropriate.<br />
<strong>Strategy</strong> <strong>Survival</strong> <strong>Guide</strong> – <strong>Strategy</strong> Skills<br />
Page 84