GovComms: The Future of Government Communication

Eleanor is the General Manager of Outreach and Capacity Building at the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). She has worked in a range of management roles, from strategic marketing and communication to Director of public affairs. Her previous places of employment include the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Australian Tax Office and Department of Environment and Heritage.

A communications honours graduate from the University of Canberra, Eleanor has worked in public affairs and communications for the Australian Government for more than 23 years, on a range of issues including heritage, pollution, natural resource management, biodiversity, arts, education and training and superannuation.

One of Eleanor’s more recent campaigns has been broadcast on the SBS Food Network, aiming to promote awareness about the ACIAR. The television program titled "The Good Cooks" sent influencers to key ACIAR sites and aimed to promote current initiatives. The program was massively successful reaching over 2 million people, leveraging media platforms and influencers.

Discussed in the episode:

• Building a big public profile for a small government department
• Rallying ministerial support for a high-risk campaign
• The importance of communicating without advertising
• Getting the balance right: editorial control and entertainment value
• How social media and influencers helped Eleanor reach over 2 million people
• Evaluating the campaign: reach vs awareness
• Weighing up the risk and reward of ambitious, creative campaigns
• Managing social media backlash
• Current ACIAR work and where you can check out Eleanor’s program: "The Good Cooks’’

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jenny is an experienced producer of data management systems and data dashboard solutions for social change. Her skills relate to co-design, delivery and evaluation of collaborations, working with complex and wicked social problems. These include poverty, homelessness, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and development, school to work transitions and school readiness in vulnerable communities.

Jenny has over 20 years’ experience in the social sector and has previously worked for leading NGO’s such as Oxfam and Plan International. She currently works as a Digital Transformation Lead at Clear Horizon, and is a Non Executive Director at Eating Disorders Victoria. She is trained in a range of reporting and communication formats to engage and mobilise communities and stakeholders. She is also a sought-after facilitator and trainer working to improve knowledge and skills in the areas of design and evaluation, especially in cross-sector collaborations.

Discussed in this episode:

• The importance of simplicity in communication
• Preparing an evaluation checklist
• The qualities of a good evaluator
• The shifting focus from output to outcomes
• The impact of technology on change measurement
• Making data work for us (and not vice versa)
• Developing a toolkit for social change
• Avoiding data overwhelm
• Resources for those who want to learn more

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jo’Anne Langham is an experienced independent consultant with a strong background working in public policy. Her capabilities include human-centred design, statistical data analysis, and public administration. Jo’Anne holds a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) focused on economic psychology - tax compliance at the University of Queensland.

She formerly worked as a Senior Director of Corporate Research and Intelligence at the Australian Taxation Office where she created a professional social research capability. She has also acted as a Governance Review Lead responsible for managing stakeholder relationships and the design of new operating models.

Jo’Anne’s latest Ph.D. work has investigated citizen experience measurement from a public sector perspective. Her framework titled ‘XE Heuristics’ looks at measuring the effectiveness of client and citizen focussed design.

Discussed in this episode:

• The origins of citizen focused experience design
• Government adoption of a citizen-focussed approach
• The importance of measuring and modifying design
• Developing metrics for client experiences
• An introduction to Jo’Anne’s experience measurement framework
• Creating customer journey maps
• Using the framework to improve public sector outcomes

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matthew Abbott, Senior Executive Leader – Corporate Affairs. Matthew is head of media, government relations, internal communications, publications and the internet at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

Before joining ASIC in 2010, Matthew was a director of a public affairs consultancy, held a senior corporate affairs role with global shopping centre company, the Westfield Group, been an adviser to Joe Hockey in the Howard Government and worked for several NSW Liberal leaders. He has also worked as a financial journalist in the United Kingdom and started his career as a staff reporter with the Australian Financial Review.

Matthew has a Bachelor of Commerce (UNSW) and a Master of Public Affairs (Sydney University). He also lectures on media and political campaigning in a masters program at Sydney University.

Discussed in todays episode:

• Influencing behavior from a corporate affairs position
• How self-sufficient regulators are regarding media and communications output
• Measuring communications progress towards a strategic objective
• How is the regulatory communications environment is changing
• The shared challenges amongst regulatory communicators
• Managing the media spotlight on the Royal Banking Commission
• The right stories to tell
• Advice for government communicators

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sheena Ireland is the founder and director of communications consultancy: Specialists in Communications. She has held senior communications positions in government and industry, including areas such as science and research, automotive, arts and sport. Her 16 years’ experience working with government and industry includes working as the Director of Stakeholder Relations at the Australian Research Council, Media Adviser to a Federal Government Cabinet Minister and Communications Manager for the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

Sheena has spoken at government and small business conferences and seminars on the importance of communications strategy, the power of social media and the need for stakeholder engagement in any communications plan. She has also facilitated panel and ‘in-conversation’ discussions on meaningful connection, our quest for happiness, and mental health and wellbeing.

Discussed in this episode:

• The impact of changing technology on government communications
• How pace and efficiency are impacting communication
• Why communicators should always have a seat at the table
• An introduction to Sheena’s new platform: Our Comms Network
• Sheena’s advice for all government communicators
• The future direction of government communications

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Barbara Walsh is a Senior Lecturer and Program Director in the Faculty of Arts and Design at the University of Canberra. Her specialised teaching and research interests lie in areas of integrated learning, social responsibility and corporate and strategic communication.

Barbara’s 25-year career in public relations and corporate communications, also includes working as an Account Director for PR Consultancies in Sydney and London, managing her own consultancy in Sydney and several senior-level roles in the Australian Public Service.

Discussed in this episode:

• Is effective social media engagement a litmus test for how well communicators can do their job? And how this reflects on the intent of an organisation to engage with citizens. Social media is a fast way to directly engage with citizens. But requires two-way trust and access to the right people for approval and support.
• The characteristics of good communicators are those who are agile, opportunistic, have strong personal characteristics, and can engage at senior levels.
• How entrenched views in senior levels of bureaucracy coupled with an increasing demand for transparency with citizens, means communicators need to argue their case for social media channels as part of the suite of channels.
• UC is helping create career ready graduates with practical integrated learning, providing students with relevant education while embedding them in practical industry environments.
• Academics need to stay on top of changes and stay ahead of students, and industry needs to stay relevant and continue moving towards specialisations. This changes the way academics teach and the way degrees are built as students move into evolving communications roles.
• And, the age-old challenge of embedding communications at the start of the process. Speaking the language of senior executives - risk appetite, governance, benefits – and the need to reshape how we talk about the role of communicators. For example, look at how behavioural scientists are taking on a communications role and establishing credibility. Can communicators create credibility using tools or methodology?

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Professor Mark Evans (PhD) is Director of Democracy 2025 and Professor of Governance at the Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis.

Mark is an expert in the study and practice of governance and policy analysis.

He has a long track record of achievement in developing high quality, values-driven, knowledge institutions built around outstanding research with policy impact, relevant professional development programs, and creative partnerships with governance actors with a common commitment to delivering policy and leadership which delivers genuine public value.

“Democracy 2025 – bridging the trust divide” is a unique collaboration between MoAD and foundation partner UC-IGPA that will see a centre established at the spiritual home of Australian Democracy, Old Parliament House, that will generate research, education and practice to enhance the quality of democratic engagement.

It will bring together academic study and debate with public engagement opportunities such as events and exhibitions to investigate and experiment with what works in terms of renewing our representative system of government and facilitate evidenced-based cross partisan conversations on how to improve our democratic practices.

Discussed in this episode:

• Communication is the oxygen of any organisation
• The complexity for modern government, is that there is no one audience
• We’re in a different era of government and it’s so important for the Australian Public Service to win hearts and minds and  engage in better storytelling about the great work that it does
• We need a great diversity in the workforce in order to understand the different channels of communication that will have any impact
• If current trends continue no more than 10% of Australians will trust their politicians and political institutions

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Simon Troeth is Director – Media at the Minerals Council of Australia.

He has a long and distinguished career in both the media and politics.     

Simon started his career as a print journalist, working for the Herald Sun and several other newspapers before moving in to politics where he spent 15 years working for state and federal politicians and was the Principal Media Adviser to the Premier of Victoria.

He has also had several roles as media and policy advisers and was the Director of Strategic Communication for the Victorian Department of Justice.

Simon has worked for three industry and has also worked as a consultant specialising in communications and government relations strategies.

Discussed in this episode:

• How communication has changed over the last 30 years
• The growing nature of immediacy and personalization in how we consume media
• Government has acknowledged the need to get closer with their audience
• Important behaviours to follow when interacting with journalists
• How to make an effective pitch
• What’s more important, getting your own channels right or interacting with the media effectively?

• Government sometimes operate inside out, they think ‘this is important, they need to hear this’ instead of asking ‘what do they need to hear?’
• The importance of understanding how your audience perceives your organisation

• Why evaluation is one of the best investments you can make as a communicator
• How to attract and retain audience attention

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shawn Callahan is the founder of Anecdote and one of the world’s leading business storytelling teachers and advisors.

He started his career in technology with companies including Oracle and IBM, before he founded Anecdote in 2004.

Anecdote helps leaders and sellers be better oral storytellers and assists corporations deliver on their strategies using stories.

Most recently Shawn published his book PUTTING STORIES TO WORK. At its heart, this book provides a process for becoming a good business storyteller.

Discussed in this episode:

• Why storytelling is an effective communication approach
• What makes a good story
• Three focus areas for organisations to use storytelling
• How you can become better at telling stories in an organisational setting
• How to decide what information you should put in a story
• Why you should never use the word story
• How to measure the impact of the value of storytelling in your organisation

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Josie Khng joined the contentgroup team in January 2018 as one of its strategists. Prior to her move to Australia, she was head of social media at global creative agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty in Singapore.

She has a wealth of global brand experience and has led award-winning creative campaigns for IKEA.

Now she focuses on developing creative strategies and content for her government and public sector clients.

Discussed in this episode:

• The future of social media and how the entertainment in storytelling can guide government communication
• Ways to capture your audience’s time
• Why personas are a must
• Examples of successful creative government campaigns
• How to structure your communication team
• Key takeaways for government storytelling

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.