Effective stakeholder engagement in regional and rural Australia
Building trust through genuine engagement

Whether you’re a not-for-profit association, a corporate organisation or a government department, the projects, decisions and initiatives you manage often involve a broad range of stakeholders including customers, community members and groups, suppliers, industry organisations,  shareholders, staff, government and representative groups. It is essential that our engagement with these stakeholders reflects their individual needs and expectations.

Developing and managing effective and strategic stakeholder engagement activity is not a one-size-fits-all approach. The most effective plans are those that are tailored, inclusive and responsive to the specific needs and circumstances of each project, organisation and stakeholder audience.

Engage early and often

Unfortunately, stakeholder engagement may not always be the first consideration in the planning process, and is only thought of when it's time to engage with your audience. Stakeholders need to be informed and consulted at the inception of the project, not during the rollout or ‘launch phase’.

Engaging stakeholders early and effectively not only ensures that the planning process is considered and effective but also helps build stronger relationships with your key audiences, leading to better decision-making, increased engagement from those stakeholders, and higher levels of trust. It also helps identify potential risks or concerns early, ensuring that solutions are more sustainable and aligned with stakeholder needs and expectations.

The Engagement Institute (formerly known as IAP2) developed this framework for effectively informing, consulting, engaging, collaborating and empowering stakeholders:

An authentic and transparent approach

Simply ‘ticking the stakeholder box’ can have long-lasting impacts for an organisation. People living in regional and rural Australia have long been calling for more thorough consultation and engagement on the opportunities and issues that shape their communities. You will often hear people say, they are ‘over-consulted and under-listened to’. This suggests that in some instances, engagement is not genuine, resulting in disenfranchised stakeholders and potentially irreparable damage to a business or brand.

Genuine and effective stakeholder engagement helps build trust, leverages broader perspectives and knowledge, fosters enhanced collaboration, and optimises support, buy-in and collective ownership of public and private endeavours.

Listen, act and listen again – then repeat

Foster ongoing dialogue and trust by engaging with stakeholders consistently, not just during specific projects or crises. Regularly solicit input through a range of engagement channels – including one-on-one engagement, community events or meetings, interviews, and surveys - making it clear that stakeholder opinions are valued and considered. Maintain regular touchpoints throughout the project lifecycle – demonstrating that their feedback has been heard, understood and acted upon. Acknowledge and validate concerns openly. Transparency about project risks and benefits builds credibility and reduces uncertainty.

Stakeholders report frustration when organisations invite them for consultations to hear their views, but then fail to follow up after the meeting to address questions or provide updates on agreed-upon actions. Once you open dialogue with your stakeholders, you need to consider it an ongoing conversation. Continue to provide appropriate information and updates. Keep the channels of communication open for stakeholders to provide input as projects progress and initiatives evolve.

Ensure information updates and ongoing consultation is appropriate

Of course, there is a fine line between engaging appropriately and ‘over-engaging’, which can lead to stakeholder fatigue. Don’t bombard stakeholders with messaging and emails or they might stop reading your material altogether. Keep communication concise, don’t overload emails and newsletters with unnecessary information. Stakeholders are usually time poor, so provide the headline developments and provide links to access greater detail for those who seek it. Ensure stakeholders understand how they can continue to provide you with their input and opinions, and ensure you listen and respond accordingly to those inputs.

Use a third-party organisation to encourage candour and honesty

Stakeholders can feel frustrated if the personnel consulting don’t have direct knowledge or responsibility for outcomes on the project they are consulting on. Throughout the consultation, ensure that stakeholders have access to the project’s decision-makers, reinforcing that feedback and opinions are valued and critical to shaping the strategic approach.

In some situations, it may be worthwhile to engage the services of an independent party that can objectively moderate and report on discussions. A respected third-party organisation, such as Seftons, with deep knowledge of regional and rural Australia, can facilitate ‘full and frank’ conversations with stakeholders. Stakeholders can be assured of anonymity and encouraged to be candid, thereby expressing their opinions freely. An experienced stakeholder specialist can also skillfully facilitate discussions to ensure that feedback and sentiment are captured, while working with your stakeholders to identify what a positive outcome or pathway forward could be – providing invaluable counsel to an organisation or project. Stakeholders can be assured that a trusted and respected third-party organisation will fully represent their views and opinions to decision-makers, given the expertise and seniority of the consulting team members, as well as the quality of reporting and recommendations for which those organisations are known.

Using facilitators with regional and rural insights and knowledge

A facilitator must always be respected and trusted by the audience they are engaging with. When it comes to regional and rural Australia, this often means the facilitator should live and work in the regions, ensuring they can truly see it from the stakeholder’s perspective. What works in the city may not always be the most effective and appropriate approach in regional and rural communities.

Regional and rural communities have their own unique considerations and challenges; therefore, a facilitator who is aware of these can ensure that engagement is tailored to meet the specific needs of the audience. At Seftons we ‘walk the talk’ in country regions and have strong and trusted relationships with many community organisations, industry associations, landowners, businesses and politicians living throughout regional and rural Australia. We work effectively with organisations to ensure their approach is tailored, and our track record ensures communities feel listened to, understood and fairly represented.

Walk in your stakeholders’ shoes

To truly engage with your stakeholders, there must be a genuine interest in fostering an authentic and open dialogue. Take the time to meet with your audiences, spend time in their community, talk to a broad range of residents and businesses, and truly understand what is shaping and influencing these communities. Regional and rural Australia is passionate about ensuring the social, economic, and environmental prosperity of their regions, and as such, will work proactively with organisations to achieve this goal. But they don’t appreciate decisions being made for them by those who are not impacted by the outcomes of those decisions. Flexibility in project design and development is fundamental and critical.

Seftons expertise and offering

Living and working in the regions ourselves, we understand what resonates and how to deliver meaningful engagement. This underpins how we work with clients to communicate their projects, services, and policies strategically.

Our highly experienced team specialises in corporate affairs, government relations, stakeholder and community engagement, facilitation, media relations, digital media and event management.

With over 30 years in the business, we have an unparalleled network of contacts and trusted relationships across Australia, spanning media outlets and journalists, industry and business leaders, and government agencies. With this network at our fingertips, we know who to call and when.

We look forward to working with you to prioritise active and genuine dialogue, ensuring better solutions, stronger relationships, and more successful project outcomes.