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Stakeholders and Constituency Building:The Foundation for Corporate Political Strategy
Public Policy, Politics, and Constituency Building
Dr. Michael D. Lord
The Washington Campus
Washington, D.C.
© 2010, M.D. Lord
The Playing Field: Levels & Arenas of Analysis & Action
Levels of analysis and action International National (federal) State Local
Focus on the federal level – the trump card
Arenas of analysis and action Executive Regulatory Judicial Legislative
Focus on the legislative arena – the trump card
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Playing the Game:The Tools of the Trade
Informational and influence tactics Political contributions Advocacy marketing Professional lobbying Executive lobbying Constituency building
All are part of the political mix and policy process
Why focus on stakeholders and constituency building? Holistic & strategic Effective & ethical Links and enhances
all other tactics
Ultimately, the trump card and the goal
© 2010, M.D. Lord
PersonalBeliefs &Ideology
Desire toRepresent
Constituents
Self-Interestin
Re-Election
What Influences Legislators?Priorities, Policies, & Politics
Arepoliticiansirrational,unethical?
Understandpolitical
rationality,responsibility!
© 2010, M.D. Lord
‘Altruistic’ LegislatorServe Constituent Interests
Self-Interested LegislatorGet Elected or Re-Elected
Listen to,Are Concerned with,
and Respond toGrassrootsConstituentFeedback
Listen to,Are Concerned with,
and Respond toGrassrootsConstituentFeedback
Why Does Constituency Building Have So Much Influence?
© 2010, M.D. Lord
The Currency of Politics:Power, Influence, Money
Power Influence* Money
$ ≠ votes $ ≠ policy $ often necessary $ rarely sufficient
All part of the mix, but not the same
Are politics crazy? Economics vs.
emotion Reality vs.
perception Rationality vs.
irrationality
The logic of politics The bottom line
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Better Understanding Constituency Building
The system is responsive, but imperfectly so Grassroots taps into both public policy makers’
self-interest (electoral) as well as their altruism The result is that grassroots activities are
singularly effective for influencing public policy Unlike other political activities, there is simply
no substitute for constituency building If you do not have good grassroots, you may
not be competitive in the public policy arena
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Politics and Public Policy:Management Maxims
Politics (and much policy) is decided by…
The Number
x
The Effectiveness
…of activists (‘lobbyists’) on either side
of a campaign or issue.
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Constituents
Eligible Voters
Registered Voters
Actually Vote
ActivelyParticipatein Politics
Limited Political Participation = Constituency Building Influence
© 2010, M.D. Lord
When, Where, Why Do Grassroots Work Best?
Grassroots most effective for simple messages, simple informational and influence tasks ‘Binary’ tasks – e.g., vote yes/no, include/delete Professional and executive lobbying often more
effective for detailed informational and persuasive tasks – e.g., specific legislative content matters
Grassroots more effective in House One ‘unit’ of grassroots spread thin in Senate Senate up for ‘review’ only every 6 years Executive and professional lobbying relatively more
effective in the Senate than in the House
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Grassroots: Party & Ideology
Business grassroots more effective among Republicans versus Democrats Business grassroots = more natural constituency
for Republican policy makers Union grassroots among Democrats a big plus But… It’s the swing, in-the-middle MoC that matter
Employees and local civic leaders as strongest grassroots and ‘grasstops’ assets Employees have the message and motivation:
“My job is at stake!” Local civic leaders cut through the noise and
present a credible, sympathetic compilation of constituent interests and sentiments
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Legislator’sRe-Election
Constituency
Corporate & IssueStakeholders
• Managers• Employees• Suppliers
• Distributors• Customers• Community• Competitors
• Ad hoc
Targeting and Focusing Grassroots Coalitions
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Rich communications and rich media are the most influential forms of feedback In-person Washington, DC office visit In-person home office visit Personal phone call Personal letter Fax E-mail Petition Mass mail
Grassroots Communications:The Medium Matters
Cost-benefitanalysis andappropriate
resourceallocationnecessary
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Grassroots Communications:System Overload
Earlier warnings proved correct Grassroots bandwagon became an arms race Too much of a good (bad) thing? Growth of Astroturf with lots of ‘fertilizer’
The insidious role of e-mail and the Internet Explosion of e-mail, little decrease in other media No increase in resources, time, attention of policy
makers and their offices to cope with the overflow Cheapening of the dialogue, too much noise
Increased cynicism, skepticism, tuning out
© 2010, M.D. Lord
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
DC visit Homevisit
Letter Phonecall
Fax E-mail Petition Massmail
?
Communications Frustrations
Is it a sincere letter?A ‘spun’ form letter?Spam? Junk mail?From the district?
Outside?Who cares?
I don’t have time.Why bother?
Post-9/11 changes
??
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Real Grassroots Versus Electronic Astroturf
Conflation, confusion of noise, Astroturf with real, ‘good’ grassroots deflates effectiveness Organizations have used lower-quality grassroots
constituency building (including Astroturf) more than tapping into and activating their real grassroots and grasstops resources
The data reflect real phenomena and real frustration that grassroots constituency building strategies and tactics must understand and deal with to be successful
You can’t fake it. It’s a waste. You’ll regret it.
© 2010, M.D. Lord
From E-mail & Internet toTwitter: Are You Serious?!
Still powerful (unparalleled) for internal organization, communication, activation
But CMF, CongressOnline et al. unrealistic Even most sincere, authentic, and personal
messages still may get lost in all the noise E-mail will never be a rich exchange medium Its very easiness, cheapness, and quickness are
precisely its weaknesses “Have your e-mail talk to my e-mail”
Except e-mail for personal, established contacts, grasstops (non-public e-mail)
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Quality Communications = Effective Policy Influence
Need for increased emphasis on quality and differentiation to cut through the noise
Grassroots, grasstops ‘bundling’ Linking grassroots with rich, personal grasstops Limited time, attention, focus of policymakers
Reach out and touch someone… The telephone: A great grassroots device! It’s rich, attention-getting, not easily faked, and not
easily ignored! Increase in role, influence of home offices
© 2010, M.D. Lord
(Good) Grassroots Never Really Goes out of Style
“Today, more than ever, Washington lobbyists simply give the signal for the real “lobbying” pressure -- letters, telegrams, phone calls, and even visits from the folks back home.
This pressure, most Congressmen find, is more effective than anything a half a dozen Capitol Hill influence men could do, and the lawmakers couldn’t curb it if they wanted to.”
-- Wall Street Journal, March 12, 1956, p. A1
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Influence: The Impact Equation
Communications influence as a function of: Quantity: More ≠ better, but #s still do matter. Message: Sells itself or DOA? Craft it. Media: Rich media move minds; junk mail dumped. Motivation: Trivial or compelling? Motive matters. Timing: Early or late? A little can go a long way. Focus: Smartly targeted or falls on deaf ears?
Invest in what really matters: The bottom line Do not waste time and resources on people, politics,
and policy you cannot realistically hope to change Do not confuse efficiency, numbers, checklists
(e.g., Internet, e-mail, scorecards) with real effectiveness
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Proactive Constituency Building vs. Reactive, Defensive Tactics
Many efforts still defensive, tactical reactions Reactive, not proactive Driven by tactics, not strategy Immediate & short-term, not ongoing & long-term
The result is limited effectiveness Cannot build an effective base of grassroots and
grasstops political capital & organization overnight Ad hoc, reactive tactics = costly, uphill battles Reactive tactics not only ineffective, but often
actually damage public ‘brand’, political capital Negative performance implications
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Corporate Constituency Building & Stakeholder Management
Take a stakeholder management approach Need for more proactive, holistic, ongoing
corporate stakeholder management Need for more proactive, holistic, ongoing
management of corporate political capital Think strategically re: firm/issue stakeholders
Who are the key stakeholders? What are their motives and interests? How are they likely to act and/or react? What is their power and influence? How can they be better managed (co-opted)?
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Transparency & Trust,Cooperation & Innovation
You cannot do it alone Stakeholders as allies, not enemies Solutions, not just problems Opportunities, not just threats
Cooperation vs. competition Power of the many and of the periphery Ask, listen, engage, embrace, share Co-enable, co-empower, co-create
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Constituency Building: Top-Down, Bottom-Up, Inside-Out
Need to link politics and public policy with business strategy and performance The CEO as Chief Public Affairs Officer Internally & externally
Public affairs & government relations function ‘Locals’ (D.C.) vs. ‘expats’ (business managers) Mix it up. It’s a team effort.
Outsourcing and vendors Think strategically, not tactically. Buyer beware…
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Stakeholder &Public Affairs
StrategyIntegrated,Holistic,Effective
POLITICALSTRATEGY
Integrated,Supportive,
EffectivePOLICY
STRATEGY
Integrated,Profitable,
SustainableBUSINESSSTRATEGY
‘Three legs
of a stool…’Eith
er a
virt
uous,
or a v
icio
us,
cycl
e…
© 2010, M.D. Lord
Stakeholders and Constituency Building:The Foundation for Corporate Political Strategy
Public Policy, Politics, and Constituency Building
Q&A?
© 2010, M.D. Lord