Eight Rules for Effective Concrete Streets & Roads Advocacy – Part 5

Rule 4 – Make the decision makers own the decision and the outcome. 

People and organisations often make the mistake of personifying agencies rather than having the bureaucrats and government officials who make the decisions own the outcomes. It should be "The Department of Transportation’s deadline" rather than, "the assistant secretary John Doe’s deadline".

On the other hand, it isn’t that "The Department was responsive", it was "The FDOT Secretary who was responsive".

Agency folks need to know that they will be treated with respect, with fairness, and, most importantly, they need to know that they will be dealt with as an individual, or else they can fade into the woodwork as the buck gets passed around.

Rule 5 – The threat of legislation can sometimes be as good as or better than passing legislation

“It’s easier to kill a bill than to pass one” is a statement that has been said frequently by detractors who wished to soften our resolve and keep us from getting off the mat. If we cannot pass a bill to get the agency to do something that would give us a greater opportunity to compete for mainline paving projects, what is the point of investing the time and effort?

However, one of the many things we have learned is that agency heads don’t like getting up in front of any committee and speaking against any legislator’s bill. Nor do they wish to risk being questioned by some committee member who might have a host of grievances against their agency and may take that opportunity to unleash a barrage. In other words, don’t let the possibility of a bill failing preclude you from getting to the bargaining table. Keep moving forward without flinching.

Written by Tim Kuebler, Chief Government Affairs Officer, Titan America. Read more at www.titanamerica.com, or look for news on Twitter and Facebook

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/the-americas/03062013/effective_concrete_advocacy_part05/