May 21. An Election Of Reputations?

(First publish on LinkedIn in April 2022)

Sunday, 10th April 2022, Australian Prime Minister called the federal elections after visiting the Governor-General in Canberra. In a country where voting is mandatory, every eligible person is expected to cast their vote come May 21. Obviously, Scott Morrison's Liberal-National Coalition (LNP) coalition and Anthony Albanese’s Labor Party (LP) have already jumped on the campaign trail to canvas the votes.

What I want to keep observing is how the reputation game will continue to play out in this election, aside the issues and policies. The policies of the two big daddies in elections have always been founded and will always be grounded on the philosophical underpinnings of their establishments. The centre-left leaning LP will lean on their vote niche 'philosophy', and so will the centre-right LNP - leaning on their policy bedrock. In simple terms, both camps have always articulated their policies based on their establishments’ genetic mapping, unless if any of them take the risk of mutating in the short space between now and May 21. Mr Morrison is already preaching a warning message for voters not to ‘risk a change to an “uncertain” future,’ while Mr Albanese, is encouraging the message of hope asking voters ‘to seize the opportunity for better times ahead’.

Political fundamentals aside, I am keen to keep follow that laser-sharp light cutting through their leadership reputation in their expected execution of duty, as Prime Minister, and how that will impact on who forms the next government. Whilst Mr Morrison still leads as a preferred leader for the job, the LP has a better aggregate as a preferred camp in recent NewsPolls. How much will leadership reputation influence the polling, going forward?

Pre-election season, Mr Morrison has been working on mending fences, to save his leadership reputation, partly damaged by his absence when parts of the country were up in smoke - experiencing one of the worst bush fires in history. He had to cut short a family holiday, to Hawaii, after receiving an avalanche of criticism for the behaviour. It is still evident how much the communities continue to feel disenfranchised, today. This is still weighing and will constantly visit to haunt him in this election. His team has tried its best to help douse the leadership reputation damage his absence caused, including placing his wife as the front and family’s spokesperson when addressing the matter, on a television program on Channel 9, a couple of months ago. A credible crisis and reputation management tactic. Mrs Morrison even took responsibility for their being away, in that difficult time. Lately, the public labelling of Mr Morrison as ‘a hypocrite and a liar’ by his deputy and coalition partner put pressure on their candidate’s leadership reputation, and the entire LNP product’s reputation, in an election season.

While Mr Morrison and the LNP is on its last-minute reputation cleaning, the LP campaign bus hit a pothole on the very first day of starting the campaign off, when Mr Albanese stumbled to answer a question on the country’s unemployment rate or official interest rate, in a televised interview. Issues that matter a lot for a country in an election year, and for a team going into a campaign. That alone has the potential to negatively impact on his leadership reputation, as not being ready to lead, from day one. Having offered an apology, he will be lucky if the LNP will not milk and continue to capitalise on it.

We cannot decisively call it out if leadership reputation ramifications plays out strongly, in this election, simply because their issues approach is based on the philosophical underpinnings of the political establishments – speaking to a voter that resonates with those ideologies. Regardless, for an election coming on the back of a few tough years of dealing with a global pandemic, devastating bush fires, flood waters, and the associated collaterals, leadership reputation demonstrated could be the x-factor in this election - especially for the vote swingers.

Who Is On Your Side?

It is not a secret that for any organisation or corporation to remain vibrant and thrive – it needs the goodwill of those that have or may potentially hold an influence or stake in its existence and service industry. These includes employees, consumers, investors, competitors, interest groups, and the public – among others, that affect and can be affected by the ramifications of an organisation or corporation policies. They therefore, have an underlying influence on an organisations’ policy direction eventuating in having an influence on how an organisation’s or corporation delivers its services.

So, why should organisations or corporations be preoccupied with garnering for goodwill from its stakeholders base? Well, creating a goodwill from your stakeholder base is relevant in ensuring organisations or corporation continue to advance their interest or agenda in collaboration with its various stakeholders – ensuring business is conducted in a favourable environment and for continuity. By cultivating goodwill from stakeholders, organisations and corporations create a soft-spot for its business interest, as well as generating a network of symbiotic support, at both policy and operational levels.

Cultivating goodwill from stakeholders is as essential and as critical an undertaking that organisations or corporations requires to invest in. It therefore, should form a significant part of the elements in packaging strategic plans for business operations. A well thought-out strategic business plan aligns its stakeholder engagement plan at the same level of importance with all other business plans. When strategised and executed effectively, stakeholder engagement plans have the audacity to minimises organisations’ or corporations’ marketing, advertising, and communications budget spend, as businesses and brands can benefit on the goodwill and influence from its stakeholder base. In addition, organisations or corporations that have a favourable relationship with its stakeholders, receive strong support when their reputation or brands face difficult times.

So, how should organisations or corporations go for its stakeholders? In identifying stakeholders, organisations or corporations need to understand that different targeted stakeholder audiences are at different levels of influence and existence. As such, organisations or corporations ought to make sure they neatly map-out targeted audiences in accordance with the dynamics the identified targets would offer or bring-in to the advancement of the organisations’ interest. Mapping enables for the evaluation of the strategic importance, influence, and the value identified stakeholder would have in the collaboration. In principle, mapping and identifying stakeholders allows for your organisation or corporation to sort its earmarked stakeholder groups accordingly whilst facilitating for a tailored strategic engagement approach suitable for each of the stakeholders.

An effective stakeholder engagement strategy and plan works in acknowledgement and mutual sustenance of other existing business strategies and plans. It has to be implemented reflective of an organisation’s public relations, issues and crisis management approaches, where necessary. Such a symbiotic approach unifies strategic efficiency and effectiveness in delivering an overall organisation’s strategic plan, and in delivering business objectives.

So, who is on your side?

#StrategicPlanning #StakeholderEngagement