That is why North Coast Strategies is proud to announce that we are a pre-approved service provider for Motor City Match (MCM), through the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC). a grant program that connects Detroit-based entrepreneurs and commercial property owners with financial and technical resources, all with the goal of growing businesses in the city's neighborhood commercial corridors.
It is easy to point fingers and to shift the focus of the core of any issue by finding others to blame. In dealing with a crises, such as the Flint Water Crises, the time and attention by those directly involved should be focused on resolving the problems and making sure the needs of those negatively affected by the situation, both short term and long term, are taken care of.
Instead of finger pointing, the state must focus on the people first and let the litigation determine who was at fault.
Engaging the public through strategic communications is a vital component of any strategy, in both the public and private sector. That is why the State of Michigan, the Governor, each state Department, the City of Flint, the business and community groups in Flint, the Mayor of Flint, and other organizations affected by the water crises needs someone to help define the narrative to communicate about the situation, to find the people and their stories to share, to run interference between the national media looking for a story and the people of Flint looking for answers, for solutions and for help.
Crisis just don’t just happen, they evolve. Just like hurricanes do not suddenly appear, they are given time to gain momentum or dissipate. A forest fire does not start out as an inferno, it starts out as a brushfire. And a terrorist attack does not just happen, the terrorists plot, plan practice and kill.
Movies are created to share stories, advocate for change and start a conversation about what life is like, can be like or should be like. While the Academy failed to celebrate the rich diversity our movies bring and honor those behind and on the screen, it is providing a forum to discuss diversity and inclusion. But frankly, we are beyond that discussion and Hollywood should be WAY beyond that.
We elected our leaders to represent a common mission not a party platform. Yet in legislating, most often it is politics that trump sound public policy. It is time to shift how government decisions are made and for our elected leaders to find a new way forward while seeking consensus instead of controversy.
While every community is different, many issues are the same. However, when the issue becomes emotional or even political, finding a solution becomes difficult but not impossible. To help facilitate that process, they need to bring in a neutral third party who is sensitive to the politics of the problem, familiar enough with the people involved, but not connected to anyone so that they can help facilitate ways to bring a resolution forward.
A powerful PR campaign begins by creating a playbook that includes your goals for the campaign, the messages to convey, the audiences to reach and how to reach them. Results should be measured by setting achievable objectives and evaluating those objectives through the campaign. Every PR investment decision-maker deserves to know whether the program met or beat its goal.
Despite the festive aurora of Halloween we are surrounded by wicked problems. They affect a lot of people and for a company they can disrupt business or even change the industry. To deal with these problems, companies need to be agile and both need to deal with issues quickly and easily before an issue becomes a wicked problem.
Businesses today do not have the luxury of waiting 30 days let alone thirty minutes to notify its stakeholders of a breach in cyber security. CEOs along with the CMO, CIO and CLO must work to create effective and swift protocols to deal with data breaches to limit legal liability risk and risk to the company’s reputation.
The Founders of our country told us that we should have more perfect union. They did not say we have to agree on everything. Public policy disputes have the potential of polarizing communities with the affect of delaying important decisions on vital issues of public policy, often resulting in diluted policies or no action at all.
While policy makers may agree on what the problem is, there is often uncertainty as to how to solve it. Issues such as selecting a new Speaker in Congress or even passing road funding in Michigan lack a process for problem solving and lacks the leadership of those involved to stand up and seek help in resolving complex public policy disputes.
Facilitation can help resolve high-profile policy disputes and help find resolution through controversy and clarity amidst chaos. To assist governments in resolving disputes by and between each other, the disputants need a trusted third party neutral who is knowledgeable about the issues and can design the process for resolution, while being sensitive to the politics of the issue.
The facilitator would design and facilitate meetings to make sure all viewpoints are considered and help each stakeholder sort through information to support sound decisions.
Great leadership requires finding common ground among diverse interests. Trained facilitators can create the system and process around an issue to help the stakeholders problem solve and move complex multi-party and often politically partisan issues forward. It is time those whom we elect step up and step forward and seek help in flagging the problem and addressing the issue.
A facilitator can and will bring the right people together to make good decisions, under difficult situations. They don’t take sides or make decisions -- They simply create the path for people to move beyond their differences, join together, and discover a new way forward.
Perhaps its too soft of a way to govern, but given the lack of consensus and increased political posturing, with tonight's debate and the Presidential election well underway, over the next twelve months it is only going to get worse.
It's time to resolve our differences so we can all move forward.
Both business and labor still have a lot to learn in regards to how to harness the power of social and they should be watching this week’s debate, monitoring the candidates social media in addition to those of the issues groups with an interest in the campaign.
Seven years ago today, a Detroit City Council President stepped up and stepped in to a role he did not seek at the time -- Mayor of Detroit. Kenneth V. Cockrel, Jr. was sworn in as Mayor on September 19, 2008 and began to rebuild a city left in shambles from its' previous mayor who was taken away in shackles.
