1. Building Community Licence in the Digital Domain
MAV Rate Capping Forum
Thursday 26 November 2015
Matthew Gordon – Founder/Director of OurSay

2. OurSay Online community engagement company established 2011. Mission:
Establish trust and meaningful engagement between government and communities.
Product:
A technology platform designed to go beyond “the usual suspects” and improve community satisfaction in the areas of engagement, advocacy, decision making and customer service.
Today I want to talk about

3. Who we work with

4. Key message: there is a gulf between issues facing local government sector and the perceptions from the community

5. Engagement can be lacklustre at the strategic level

6. Or engagement looks more like crisis/outrage management.

7. Finding the connections
I wonder what they are thinking out there?
COUNCIL BUILDING
I wonder what is going on in there?
The problem:
-community and local government are not close enough
-low awareness of local government services and programs
-unrealised expectation about the value of the local government cause
-no effective feedback mechanisms for citizens or council officers

8. Time until a decision is made
Innovating
Leading
Starting
Lagging
Government
Capacity to Engage
There’s a moment where the community becomes more engaged and the government is getting ready to close off consultation and make a decision.
What is happening here?
There’s an opportunity lost here. At this moment, there is an antennae we need to know when the community is ready to engage.
Thinking about your staff, how do we hone that foresight/intelligence so they know when to engage? How do we best leverage this opportunity
----- Meeting Notes (4/03/ :35) -----
Use examples for each level
Laggard: Abbott and Health
Innovator: Iceland constitution, Hepburn, Christchurch re-build.
Community
Time until a decision is made

9. Source: Collins Street this morning

10. Yellow Social Media Report 2015: Reasons Australians use social media

13. Reference: oursay.org/southgippsland
“The OurSay approach secured community endorsement ...and helped both sides build a shared understanding of community priorities, the constraints, the initial and ongoing costs associated and the opportunities for finding creative solutions”  - Tim Tamlin, CEO
South Gipplsand Shire helped manage community expectations for its 2015/16 budget. Leading a meaningful conversation around small budgets and increased services well before a rate capping environment. Over 750 people involved
Reference: oursay.org/southgippsland

14. Reference: oursay.org/hepburn
“…opting to give control of the process over to the people was one of the most daring but productive decisions council has made in my time. Almost all of the risk we initially perceived was dampened or totally dissolved by allowing the community to fully debate issues in a truly open forum.” Councilor Sebastian Klein
Hepburn used the OurSay process to engage 10% of rate base for Council Plan. Lots of diversity and a critical mass to impact reputation.
Project won an International Association for Public Participation, Project of the Year category
Reference: oursay.org/hepburn

15. Increase in satisfaction by ~20% in 2 months of using OurSay
Results: more than 10% of ratepayers involved in the development of a council plan, 21% increase in the community’s overall satisfaction with the direction of council & international award.
Reputation is almost solely determined by quality of engagement. Remember: From Opinion  to understanding issues  to understanding options  to living with the decision
----- Meeting Notes (4/03/ :35) -----
Can we show a graph with bump on Hepburn compared with other councils
Show 2011 and show 2012
OurSay engagement in 2013 did X.

16. Today I want to tal

17. Opinion
Ownership
Options
Decision

18. Opinion Voiced, Valid, Legitimate Limited, Narrow, Untested
Not necessarily factual
All care no responsibility
Loopy

19. Opinion Ownership See themselves as part of the issue/problem
Connection to the issue
See themselves as part of the issue/problem
Accept the need to act/take responsibility
Contemplate behaviour change
Can lead to powerlessness/cynicism

20. Opinion Ownership Options Accept the need to act
Search for options, Considers variables
Time, resources, money, public interest
Seeks solutions

21. Opinion Ownership Options Decision Prepared to accept solutions
Even if it’s someone else’s idea
Even if it requires sacrifice
Change is understood/accepted

22. Opinion
Ownership
Options
Decision