Section 5: Tips and advice

It is important to understand the local stakeholder context prior to conducting engagement. For example, if there are existing issues within an area, it is likely that the engagement conducted will identify legacy issues that run deeper than the project/ activity.

Prior to commencement of engagement activities, it is important for practitioners and companies to set expectations around the nature and extent of engagement, the non-negotiable aspects of a project/activity, and the nature of the feedback mechanisms in place.

Engaging early and often helps to ensure that stakeholders are receiving accurate information. However, there is typically a level of uncertainty in the early stages of a project, which requires a company to be open with stakeholders that things are likely to change over time, so that expectations can be managed.

Project uncertainty has the potential to result in short-term thinking, which can limit the discussions held with stakeholders about future stages or requirements. Companies should not shy away from sharing the ‘bigger picture’ with stakeholders – just make sure the realities of the process are shared.

There is a tendency for engagement to be considered as an ‘after thought’ when planning a project/activity. Stakeholders can sense when there is a lack of preparation put into engagement and will be less inclined to provide feedback. This sentiment, in-turn, will reduce overall stakeholder involvement in the process and cause potential risks to the project/activity proceeding.

Investing in the training of personnel to undertake stakeholder engagement allows them to be better equipped to manage concerns and/or feedback raised by stakeholders. This training should extend to community liaison officers and those who interact with project/activity stakeholders on a regular basis.

In some cases, practitioners undertaking stakeholder engagement may not be social performance specialists but may be from other technical backgrounds within the company. Where this is the case, it is important that appropriate support and resources are made available to these practitioners to assist engagement activities.

It is important to engage with the local, provincial and/or state governments early when conducting projects/activities. While regulations may be well understood, engagement will enable a greater understanding of the local regulatory context, potential stakeholders, and opportunities for future engagement activities.

Unless required by regulation, there is a tendency to wait until an issue arises before conducting stakeholder engagement. Seeking a joint resolution to a problem is easier when a relationship with stakeholders is already well established. Attempting to build a relationship with stakeholders once an issue has been raised is often more difficult to achieve.

When planning stakeholder engagement activities, it is important to ensure that locally important dates (e.g. religious or cultural festivals and public holidays) are avoided to ensure that proper respect for stakeholders’ time is demonstrated, and to maximise attendance.

It is ok when circumstances or aspects of a project/ activity change, even if documentation has been disclosed. Being transparent with stakeholders about the changes that have occurred, and the reasons why they were necessary, will help to build trust and foster more robust relationships.

While it is often seen as a detriment to disclose documentation early in the life cycle of a project/ activity, doing so will give stakeholders time to consider the information provided and feel that they have an ‘actual’ say in the project/activity, rather than viewing engagement as a tokenistic gesture.

Ensuring that appropriate records are kept of the engagement undertaken with stakeholders is essential. This documentation should include the key aspects of the engagement conducted (e.g. stakeholder details, time/date/location, discussion points and agreed actions), as well as any data needed to help inform previously established KPIs.

It is important to ensure that any feedback received from stakeholders is considered as part of the project/activity/operation, and the outcomes are communicated appropriately to the stakeholder who provided the feedback. This closes the loop and helps to inculcate a sense of trust and appreciation.

Where this occurs, it is important that the company remains central to the engagement process to ensure relationships developed are retained by the company once the third party has moved on.

While it is the tendency of companies to think that all complaints are ‘bad’ this is a mindset that will lead to restricting engagement with stakeholders for fear of receiving complaints. On the contrary, complaints usually demonstrate that people feel comfortable coming forward and making their concerns known.

While engaging with stakeholders is rewarding it can also be difficult, particularly if the project/ activity is contentious within the local community. Accordingly, it is important to check in with practitioners undertaking engagement activities to understand if there are any issues impacting their mental wellbeing (e.g. stress or fatigue).

As part of the engagement conducted, look for opportunities to support capacity building with stakeholders. Capacity building could be in the form of furthered discussions around a sector of the industry, workshopping how to access project/ activity documentation, or understanding the difference between perceptions and actualised impacts.

While stakeholder engagement guidelines are available, it is important that a practitioner and/ or company remain flexible in their approach. Implementing alternative techniques/tools or approaches if/when needed is not wrong, but rather encouraged. Engagement should be context specific, particularly if it is to be meaningful to the stakeholders for a particular project/activity.

The frequency of engagement is important to grow relationships with stakeholders. Companies should look to spend time with stakeholders and participate in community events even if the engagement is not linked to a specific project/activity. This will help to foster trust and lead to opportunities for improved engagement in the future.

Developing and maintaining a commitments register will help a company ensure that any commitments made as part of stakeholder engagement activities are documented for future reference and action. This will also provide continuity and reassurance to stakeholders if the practitioners who carried out engagement are no longer involved in the project/activity.