Providing Feedback and Information to Stakeholders

As mentioned previously, responsiveness demonstrates to the stakeholder that their input is important. Timely feedback lets the stakeholder know their concerns were heard and can often show how their input was incorporated into the project. There are several tools that can be used to provide feedback:

Meeting Summaries – A meeting summary provides an overview of an open house, public hearing or public meeting. It provides meeting details, such as the date, time and place of the meeting and how the meeting was noticed. It also recaps citizen comment received at the meeting and announces any survey results or criteria ranking. Meeting summaries should be sent to all project stakeholders. They should also be sent to elected officials, so they know how constituents feel about the project. Meeting summaries should be mailed within 48 hours of a meeting.

Direct Mail – Direct mail is anything mailed directly to a group of stakeholders. Direct mail is an excellent way to provide updates on a project and let citizens know about the next steps.

News Releases – News releases announce project news to print and broadcast mediums. They can be used to announce public meetings, key project milestones, project changes as a result of citizen input and decisions. News releases should be written in news style, using the inverted pyramid, where the most important information is in the top of the release.

Public Meetings – Feedback can also be provided to stakeholders at open houses, public meetings and board meetings.

Phone calls and letters – Phone calls and letters are a tried and true method of responding to inquiries or concerns from citizens.

Issue Advertisements – When misinformation begins to take a life of its own, an agency may need to respond to a broad audience through paid advertising. A public information ad that addresses specific issues is called an issue ad. Issue ads should be carefully developed with input from top management and public communications professionals. Media placement should target the specific audiences most affected by the misinformation.

Op-Eds – An op-ed is a guest editorial written by a representative of the utility or by a third-party that is submitted to the newspaper for publication. An op-ed appears on the page opposite the editorial page. Op-eds are a good way to clarify misinformation, address specific issues, discuss the goals of a project or how the project benefits the community.

AWWA Paper:

Page 1
Challenges of Forming an Interdisciplinary Team
- Identifying Key Stakeholders and Groups
- Forming Relationships

Page 2
Specific Public Involvement Techniques
- Public Involvement Techniques
- Techniques for Obtaining Input

Page 3
Effective Use of Citizen Committees

Page 4
Encouraging Teamwork Among Competing Public Relations Firms

Page 5
Providing Feedback and Information to Stakeholders

Page 6
Defining Project Success