On my regular weekend Ubers service, my 16-year-old son asked me what I do for a living.
I started with the standard response.
” I help people make the best case possible to get the law they want.
That usually involves getting them to put their best messages down on paper. Then, we put them down in a PowerPoint, a paper explaining their position, and then introduce them to some people making the decisions”.
He responded, “is that it?”
It is true, and you could have a nice slide deck, a legible position paper, and maybe even some kosher studies, evidence and data made into some nice images. It is a good starting point, but it will not get you what you want.
I went on to explain “that a lobbyist helps people get things changed. They get problems solved. Those problems are around a policy, a law or a decision (PLD).
You help people – NGOs and industry – get their point of view taken up by the people making the decisions on policies, laws and decisions.”
It’s often a competition between different sides. One side wants something, and the other side does not want that thing. So, you spend your time either helping people get a PLD taken up or making sure that the PLD is not taken up. “
The PLD, when implemented, make a great deal of difference to some people. Most of the time, the public is unaware of these political currents and pressure to change, but it does not mean the current is not flowing. We know about the oceans in the ocean even if we can’t see them. Sometimes, we can witness their impacts.
Windows of Opportunity
I would explain that there are a few moments when key decisions are made:
-
Issue taken up by Prime Ministers (European Council’s agenda)
-
Issue taken up in European Political Group Manifestos
-
Issue taken up in the new Commission’s Political Guidelines
-
Issue taken up in the Annual Work Plan
-
Decision to start work on a proposal
-
Proposal tabled
-
Proposal amended
-
Amendment adopted
-
Law implemented
Your job as a lobbyist is to work back from those decision points and make sure the people you are helping get the outcome they want. There is always a moment in time before these key moments when the real decision is taken.
When you help people as a lobbyist, you help them do what is needed to get them the PLD. As important, your real value is help them not do things that won’t help them get what they want.
Who are you trying to help?
You are only helping people who need help.
You don’t need to help those who don’t need help. This is going to be one of three groups:
-
This is the small group who don’t have any PLD problems. They do exist.
-
There is a group of experienced and successful sherpas who know every step in the journey to change a PLD so that they can do it themselves. If they had successfully walked the journey with no mishaps and knew every window of opportunity, what to bring and not to bring to the table, and how to best present their data, information and information to get what they wanted to the key decision makers they would not be calling you. They do exist.
-
There is a sizeable group who refuse to think that the policy, law or decision has anything to do with them. They deny all signs leading up to the policy, law or decision being published that refers specifically to them, and often even after that.
Would you perform your own surgery?
I use a checklist approach for trying to change these PLD. It works for surgeons and airline pilots.
[pdf-embedder url=”https://www.aaronmcloughlin.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/WHO-Surgical-Safety-Checklist.pdf” title=”WHO Surgical Safety Checklist”]
They are like the protocols used in medical treatment. I find these checklists useful for a diagnosis and the prognosis of the problem (policy, law, or decision) and for being able to recommend the best treatment on the limited circle of PLDs I work on. They are built up on 25 years of practical experience. Over time, one thing is apparent. The later one steps in to assist, the chances of success diminish. For me, the cornerstone is timely, accurate and open data, evidence and solutions. Without this, the chances of success are slim to nil.
You could have a nice slide deck, a legible position paper, and maybe even some kosher studies, evidence and data. That’s a great starting point, but it will not get you to success.
In the end, “a lobbyist helps people bring the right case (evidence, information, and solution), to the right decision-maker(s), at the right time, and in the right way, so it lands with the decision-makers(s), and a decision is taken that goes in their favour. ” Unless you are 1, 2 or 3, if you have a PLD problem to solve, you likely need a lobbyist to help you.