Vision and business strategy needs to support a community engagement focus, and community engagement should be embedded in corporate, business and operational plans. Performance indicators that help to track community engagement activities will support the reporting required under the Queensland Government annual reporting guidelines.

All engagement activities delivered by government agencies need to reflect government policy and priorities. Management tips may include:

• clearly identifying how your engagement activity will support the agency’s vision and business strategy and making this clear in the planning and implementation phases
• seeking opportunities to include engagement activities in your business and operational plans.

Internal government agency policies need to reflect whole-of-government policy and should also reflect the expectations of communities and citizens. As a manager, you have a responsibility to understand the policies of your agency, how they interact with whole-of-government and other policies, relevant legislation and the policies of other state, local and federal government agencies.

• Engagement activity objectives must include a requirement that the activity will meet government policy needs and priorities.
• Ensure that the political impact of community engagement is considered.
• Inform stakeholders of government policy and priorities.

Stakeholder groups may have interactions with government agencies at different levels. They may interact in one way at local or regional level and in another way at head office or departmental level. These differences can also be identified in cross-government partnerships. You can manage the risks associated with stakeholder relationships and cross-government partnerships by:

• maintaining links with key stakeholder groups and keeping them informed of community engagement activities
• ensuring that all relevant internal groups know about the community engagement activity
• ensuring local staff provide input into planning for engagement activities that are driven from head office, to ensure that there is a local focus to the effort
• advising partner agencies of the community engagement activity and which stakeholder groups are involved
• registering agency engagement activities on ConsultQld.

As discussed in the section on skills, community engagement skills are part of the overall leadership capabilities expected of government managers. Community engagement skills can be reflected in position descriptions, leadership skills development programs, recruitment activities and other human resource management strategies that support leadership capacity development. Other management tips can include:

• Ensure that all leaders are aware of the community engagement program.
• Recognise your own role as a leader.
• Access links provided through this program to develop skills as required.
• Access the links provided through this learning program to continue to build skills and knowledge.
• Reflect community engagement skills in position descriptions, leadership skills development programs, recruitment activities and other human resource management strategies.

Organisational culture is the “way we do things around here”. Culture is reflected in the plans, structures, business processes, relationships across the organisation, what people identify with, organisational icons, and the way information is shared. Tips for managing the risks associated with organisational culture include:

• Create opportunities to disseminate information about community engagement.
• Ensure that stories about successful community engagement events are collected and shared.
• Use engagement methods for organisational events to demonstrate the benefits.
• Ensure that scarce resources are allocated to community engagement activities.
• Create linkages between local and head office staff working on engagement.
• Include community engagement principles, goals, strategies, etc. in agency plans.

Employee commitment and skills development strategies in relation to community engagement will influence short and long-term community engagement outcomes.

• Demonstrating that engagement is valued. These include provision of access to appropriate training programs.
• Ensure that human resource management systems support engagement. For example, position descriptions should, where appropriate, include community engagement skills expectations.
• Ensuring that staff have adequate access to on-the-job involvement in engagement activities, even though their skills are still being developed.
• Ensuring that staff are aware of the requirements of community engagement and the associated risks and opportunities as outlined in this course.
• Ensure agency systems provide a safe working environment for staff undertaking engagement.

It is important that internal communication and engagement of staff within the Department reflect the same approaches being used with the community. Include internal communication and information-sharing strategies in planning, implementation and evaluation of community engagement.

Community engagement activities often require or have implications for agency resources. This may be in relation to the community engagement activity itself, the implications of the community engagement issue that is being addressed, or in relation to potential increased levels of involvement with the community as a follow-up to the community engagement activity. The internal resourcing implications of a community engagement activity may include people, equipment, skills development, activity funding, project funding or program funding.

• Build community engagement resourcing into business and operational planning.
• Be clear about expectations of engagement and the staff who undertake that engagement.
• Be conservative about estimates of the resources required to manage community engagement activities.
• Consider the implications of community engagement in workplace health and safety planning and resourcing.

If agencies choose to develop their own internal electronic engagement processes rather than using those provided through Get involved, these may need to be supported through the internal technology systems of an organisation.

• Build community engagement technology needs into business and operational planning.
• Make contact with IT staff early where it is likely that you will be using technology as part of a community engagement effort.
• Provide adequate resources
• Review the options provided through Get involved or Generate before deciding to proceed with the development of an in-house e-engagement platform.