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Working with communities

The following challenging situations occur from time to time, though thankfully (usually) not all at the one time. Select the topic for a list of ideas on how you might manage these challenging situations.

Engaging the often silent majority

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Explain the benefits of participating in all print, electronic and face-to-face interaction.
  • Make it as easy as possible for participants to engage.
Through process
  • Provide multiple (and easy) ways to engage, e.g. newsletter, response form, web site with response facility and freecall/freefax/freepost services.
  • Issue personal invitations from ministers, elected representatives and senior managers to individuals or organisations to participate.
  • Consider using representative sampling methods for face-to-face, telephone or mail survey/interview.
  • Bring the engagement as close as possible to the community of interest, e.g. staffed displays at local shopping centres, schools, basketball competition and community fair.
  • Consider forming a representative reference/focus group to explore ways of engaging the silent majority (or use this group as a source of information).
  • Use a snowballing technique where community members are invited to introduce you to others in their network who may be interested in the topic.
  • Ensure that participation is easy for communities by paying attention to the accessibility of venues, access to public transport and parking, provision of food, child care, interpreters, etc.

Self-interest or unrepresentative lobbying

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Acknowledge issues, concerns and suggestions.
  • Highlight the need to obtain the views of all community segments in order to make an informed decision.
  • When a decision is made, ensure participants understand how and why the decision was made.
Through process
  • Ensure participation of all community segments to help deliver balanced outcomes.
  • Meet individually, if possible, rather than in a group situation, to avoid potential conflict with other participants.
  • With group situations, break a larger group into small groups/trios for discussion, to limit undue influence over all participants, and seek a summary of each small group’s comments, thereby obtaining a more balanced account.
  • Consider small groups with similar interests, e.g. break up on the basis of interests.

Dominant or high-influence participants

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Seek to limit the opportunity for any individual or group to unduly influence the outcome.
  • If they are known beforehand, dominant individuals may be managed by structuring of the interaction (face-to-face, mail, etc. rather than in groups), strong facilitation or turn-taking when this occurs in groups.
Through process
  • In group situations, set ground rules participatively at the outset, to increase control over inappropriate behaviour.
  • Ask comment from high-influence participants after others have had a chance to contribute.
  • Break up large groups in small groups, trios or pairs, to limit the ability to dominate overall.
  • Try to avoid placing dominant participants in small groups which they can easily control.

Aggressive participants

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Aggression can be a combination of learned behaviour and a response to anxiety. Listening skills are the most important in these cases. Firstly seek to understand the other person, before you seek to be understood.
Through process
  • In group situations, set ground rules participatively at the outset, to increase control over inappropriate behaviour.
  • Provide opportunities for those who have high levels of anxiety to meet you privately, so you can give more attention to their concerns.
  • Act quickly to discourage aggressive behaviour in groups, e.g. with reference to agreed group rules to avoid any escalation.

Participants with different expectations or incorrect information

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Reinforce the goals, benefits and negotiables.
  • Clearly explain the facts, non-negotiables, community engagement goals and decision-making processes.
  • Seek to reach agreement on how best participants can provide information or actively participate to ensure their perspectives are fully understood.
Through process
  • Consider having a first round of briefings, where factual information and roles can be discussed, before engaging in the negotiables.
  • Use multiple sources of information dissemination, e.g. advertising, press briefings, brochures, web site, displays, face-to-face meetings and targeted community briefings.
  • Ensure that any changes to negotiables/non-negotiables are quickly and clearly conveyed to all communities.
  • If possible, refer communities to other groups or processes through which their issues might be addressed.

Negative or inaccurate media coverage

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Seek to build long-term relationships with media personnel, so they will come to you for information to publish a balanced account of the issues.
Through process
  • Check with your media relations unit, as there are protocols and approval processes to consider.
  • Consider media briefings to provide factual information to journalists.
  • Seek agreement with the media to inquire with the agency on their perspective of an issue before releasing the story.
  • Consider a quick response to inaccurate coverage.
  • Consider not responding to inaccurate coverage, especially if this may escalate matters further.

Distrust or cynicism toward the process of engagement

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Seek to build trust through clear, open and inclusive processes and by delivering on commitments.
Through processes
  • Consider forming a representative reference group, made up of credible community members who oversee the processes of engagement, seeking to establish openness and face-validity for the process.
  • Maximise the focus on negotiables and the way community input will help decide the outcomes.
  • Seek community participation in developing decision-making criteria and weightings.
  • Consider a first round of engagement with key community groups, to help establish overall project milestones and, where possible, influence the level of technical/social investigation.
  • Provide timely milestone reports to demonstrate progress and responsiveness.

Non-participation (or lack of diversity of participation)

Some tips for managing the challenges

Generally
  • Communicate possible implications or issues to be addressed and the benefits of participation.
  • Conduct a community segmentation exercise and decide on the most appropriate method of engagement for each segment.
Through process
  • Form a reference group/focus group made up of representatives from the full range of stakeholders. Use these people as sounding boards to explore the best methods for engaging their constituents.
  • Work with a reference group made up of representatives from the full range of stakeholders, to explore the issues.
  • If possible, use a random face-to-face (or telephone) survey of the community to explore the reasons for low participation.

Note: A lack of diversity of participation can also be symptomatic of low levels of awareness and interest or lack of knowledge of benefits from engaging.