Communications: the secret sauce in Council’s strategic planning

I wrote this article for the LGMA Exchange magazine in 2025. It is worth repeating here as we prepare for our new councils and their orientation and strategic planning this fall.

Local government strategic plans live or die on their ability to connect with people—inside the organization and out in the community. If Council wants that plan to guide real‑world decisions (instead of gathering dust in the clerk’s office), communications and community engagement must be baked in from day one.

Who should you engage?

Think bigger than the usual suspects. A solid plan listens to resident voices and:

• Indigenous governments whose rights and interests overlap municipal boundaries.
• Invested parties such as business groups, non‑profits, youth, seniors and newcomers.
• Neighbouring jurisdictions: regional districts, improvement districts, school boards.
• Internal teams—the people who will actually deliver the plan.

BC legislation doesn’t oblige a formal consultation round for strategic plans, but Section 98 of the Community Charter does require an annual public meeting on the municipal report where progress is fair game for questions​. Treat that as a minimum standard, not the ceiling.

Engagement, stage by stage

Here us what excellence could look like:

Stage	Goal	Comms/Engagement Tactics
Priority‑setting	Discover what matters most and surface blind spots.	Online “idea walls”, pop‑up booths at existing events, short staff interviews, and an accessible resident survey (mobile‑friendly, plain language).
Draft & adoption	Test draft priorities and show how input shaped them.	Release a plain‑language summary, host a quick virtual Q & A, and publish a redline version so people can track changes.
Implementation	Keep everyone rowing in the same direction.	Internal launch with department heads, FAQs for frontline staff, and a short explainer video for the public.
Monitoring & reporting	Prove progress (or course‑correct) in real time.	Interactive dashboards, quarterly e‑news briefs, and “story‑behind‑the‑numbers” features spotlighting projects and people.

Three pro tips:

1. Move from “announce and defend” to “listen and co‑create.” Early engagement is cheaper than late‑stage backlash.
2. Close the loop every time. Tell people what you heard and what you did about it, even if you didn’t take their advice.
3. Consider an annual survey to check up on how residents think the plan is progressing and ask if their priorities have changed. The ability to adapt as the world changes around us and our residents’ priorities change is vital.

Tie it to the staff work plan (or expect nothing to happen)

A strategic plan without a line of sight to departmental work plans is a wish list. After Council adopts the plan, translate each priority into SMART actions, assign an owner, and link it to the annual budget cycle. Department directors can show how their 12‑month work plan advances Council goals before their budgets get green‑lighted. Bonus: that alignment makes year‑end reporting under the Community Charter almost painless.

Publish the quarterly progress reports on the municipal website. That level of transparency builds trust and over time will improve your community engagement.

When Council feels pressure from the community to have staff plan for a fun new project (maybe a zipline or trampoline park), you can now ask what item they would like you to remove from the workplan to achieve that. Phew! That will keep everyone paddling in the same direction to achieve councils’ and the community’s goals.

Transparent reporting: show, don’t just tell

Steal these ideas shamelessly; your residents will thank you.

Kelowna put out an annual progress report in plain language with clear metrics and a promise to refresh annually. We all embrace the idea of transparency, but Kelowna clearly shows what that looks like. This is excellence in communications and accountability.

Nanaimo’s progress report maps out every Council action to colour-coded status including comments on delays and next steps. It gives residents a clear and dependable pulse-check.

Five fast communications wins

1. Use plain language and ditch the jargon. Ensure terms are inclusive. Yes, even “stakeholder” is no longer a word we use. Try “invested parties” instead.
2. Infographics beat 40‑page PDFs. Post the full plan for the keeners, but lead with a one‑pager.
3. Pair quantitative dashboards with human‑interest stories. Data builds trust; stories build hearts.
4. Schedule quarterly social posts summarizing wins and lessons learned.
5. Make feedback evergreen. Keep a comments form open year‑round so ideas don’t wait four years for the next plan.

Final word

Strategic planning isn’t a season; it’s a conversation. When communications pros partner with planners, finance, and front‑line teams, the plan becomes more than a Council wish list. It becomes the community’s playbook. And that is how you turn lofty vision into real action.