Connecting People and Communities
Social Impact Assessment
It doesn’t matter what we are doing – we impact people and communities.
Traditionally, we think of impacts on a community starting with project construction. In our experience, backed up by research, we know that impacts on a community begin as soon as rumours of a possible project start. And managing these impacts needs to occur as one of the first steps after a project is conceived.
We can work with you to undertake Social Impact Assessments in a balanced and objective way looking at the benefits and opportunities as well as the challenges. We can assist you in:
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Building strong relationships with stakeholders and communities meaning less negative reactions if there are incidents
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Developing trust and respect with stakeholders and communities
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Being publicly accountable for decisions made
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Recognising impacts and opportunities as early as possible and managing them in consultation/partnership with relevant stakeholders making for more efficient project development and delivery.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Communities’ expectations of social performance for companies and government agencies are continually evolving and fast becoming a growing feature in what it means to not only comply but to be competitive. Communities are becoming not only part of the approval process for projects or customers for products; they are active in how a company or government department performs socially, environmentally and financially. And it’s more than just an annual ‘measure’ of social contributions; it’s a way in which social sustainability is integrated into an organisation’s development and decision-making.
Our team can work with you to integrate a socially sustainable approach to development and decision-making within your organisation in order to:
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Manage risk
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Identify local knowledge
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Assist in developing and maintaining relationships
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Better manage social risks
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Achieve competitive advantage through self regulation
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Gain community and employee endorsement.
Stakeholder & Community Engagement
Organisations have a solid understanding of the importance of developing and maintaining good relationships with stakeholders and communities. These relationships help us understand what is important to people and how our organisations and our projects ‘fit’ into communities. By understanding the aspirations and drivers of our communities and other stakeholders we can achieve improved project outcomes and better integrate into communities.
Our IAP2 certified practitioners can work with you to develop and implement strategies for effectively engaging your stakeholders and communities.
Facilitation
Meetings are a big part of our life and many may have set agendas and some may not. In order to get the most from your meetings, someone has to shape and guide the process of working together so that you meet your goals and accomplish what you've set out to do. Sometimes, you need an objective facilitator from outside your organisation to assist a group in developing a successful decision, solution or conclusion.
Our facilitators can work with your team members or community groups to focus on how to move through a process and to draw out the ideas and views from people.
We don’t just arrive on the day and ensure the meeting is kept to time. We take the time to work with you to design and implement a meeting strategy that is focused on achieving the outcome.