The Stakeholder Engagement Manual Volume 2 - AccountAbility

Strengthen Capacities for Engagement
P12: DEVELOPING THE INTERNAL SKILLS AND CHARACTERISTICS NEEDED FOR STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
Engagement
Techniques
A knowledge of relevant approaches to
stakeholder engagement is key (as
outlined in Stage 4).
The skill sets needed for more involved
engagements such as partnerships,
community relations development or
confl ict resolution differ from more
‘traditional’ and sometimes one-way
market research techniques such as
questionnaire surveys or focus groups, etc.
These are unlikely to rest with the
same individual(s), and so may involve
an integrated multi-disciplinary team from
different functions within the organisation,
e.g. human resources, public relations,
customer affairs etc. (or drawing upon skills
from outside as necessary).
Issues Knowledge Expertise and experience in the specifi c
issues that are subject of the engagement
may be a pre-requisite for the staff
involved. This could include both
knowledge of sustainable development
issues such as labour rights or climate
change as well as an understanding of the
industry and political context.
Again, to engage on complex issues
may require building a multi-disciplinary
team that draws upon the ‘know-how’ of
different departments, e.g. procurement,
or environmental management, or
drawing upon external expertise.
Credibility
Stakeholder Engagement Skills and Characteristics (continued)
Success in securing trust and providing
assurance to stakeholders may in part
depend upon how well those involved in
stakeholder engagement relate to and
are perceived by a particular stakeholder
group.
Internal learning groups can ensure
that those engaging with stakeholders
in different parts of the business can
contribute from each other’s
experiences.
Numerous service providers offer
mentoring and support to build
practitioner competencies, for example
BSR and the Environment Council,
see www.bsr.org or
www.environment-council.org.uk
respectively.
AccountAbility has developed training,
professional certifi cation (with IRCA)
and quality standards in stakeholder
engagement aligned with its AA1000
Series. Further information available at
www.accountability.org.uk/ training.
The sources already identifi ed in Stage
2 (learning from others), can be a useful
reference. Establishing an issue-specifi c
database that individuals from all
parts of the business can access and
draw information from is a useful
resource for learning as needed.
Again, numerous service providers offer
advice and support to build practitioner
competencies on specifi c issues (see the
annex for some of these organisations).
Credibility here may mean ensuring
that people involved in engagement
have a good understanding of the
communities involved. In general,
recruitment from local environments,
which ensures equal opportunities
regardless of gender, religion, ethnicity,
sexual orientation etc., will help to ensure
that staff inside the company refl ect the
diversity of stakeholders.
It may be necessary to involve external
people or organisations in facilitating
engagement processes. They can
provide credibility by being perceived as
independent or because of their track
record in contributing towards positive
outcomes in the area.