Building Engagement Habits

by Jessica Delaney, Principal, Engagement + Strategic Communications

There is something joyful about fresh notebooks and pens, soothing hot drinks and the crispness in the morning air – fall is coming. Back to school has always been a time of planning for me. What are the fall routines I want to plan for? What are the goals or things I want to achieve before year end? What can I do to get myself “sorted” for winter, which, if I’m being honest, is not my favourite season. From a personal perspective, here are a few plans for the fall:

  • Taking a pottery class (to make beautiful mugs to hold all those hot drinks)
  • Continue with regular Peloton workshops, but with more strength
  • Continue pickling, canning and jamming (homemade jam just tastes better)

On the professional front, continuing to build solid habits when planning engagements, I believe, will pay dividends especially during the busy months ahead. Here are a few:

  • Identify key milestones in your engagement plan early and confirm who the “approver” or decision maker is. Who is the internal steward of this engagement? Who is the executive sponsor?
  • Be really specific about recruitment and promotion. Who is doing recruitment? Who are we recruiting and why would they want to participate?  
  • Take the time to build common understanding internally about what a “successful” engagement will look like. What does a successful engagement look like or feel like? What do you hope to have learned following the engagement? 

We sometimes can get into routines with engagement planning and think that everyone – client, consultant and community – is on the same page. A great habit to develop is to check in early on the questions above.

We’d love to hear about engagement habits that are working for you or that you are going to prioritize in the months ahead.