In a few weeks, a new council will take the oath of office. Some members will be returning. Many will be brand new. Almost none of them will know what corporate communications is, what your team does all day, or why it matters.
That isn’t a criticism. People run for council because they care about their community, not because they’ve studied how a municipality talks to its residents. But if you don’t define your role early, someone else will define it for you. Sometimes that someone wants a news release about their ribbon cutting or a public statement about a service another government provides.
Council orientation is your window. Whether you’re building a presentation, writing a report for the orientation package, or adding a section to your council toolkit, here’s what your new council needs to hear about what you do, why you do it, and what you don’t do.
What corporate communications does
Corporate communications is how the municipality, as an organization, keeps residents informed about and involved in the decisions that affect their lives. It’s a core function, like finance or engineering. It isn’t a support service that makes things look nice at the end.
In practice, your team:
- Explains what the municipality is doing and why, from budgets and bylaws to road closures and garbage schedules.
- Designs and runs public engagement, so residents can shape decisions before they’re made, not just hear about them after.
- Shares council’s decisions clearly and accurately, once council has made them.
- Manages issues and emergencies, including serving as the information officer when the emergency operations centre is activated.
- Protects the organization’s reputation and the public’s trust in local government.
- Helps staff and council communicate in plain language, through key messages, briefing notes, and spokesperson support.
Why it matters to council
Residents can’t support what they don’t understand. When people know the reasons behind a decision, they may still disagree, but they’re far less likely to assume the worst. That’s what keeps council’s decisions standing after the vote.
Good communication also saves time and money. Clear information up front means fewer calls to the front counter, fewer freedom of information requests, and fewer delegations showing up angry about something they first heard about on Facebook.
Engagement done early and honestly reduces backlash later. It’s much cheaper to hear concerns at the open house than to reverse a decision once a project is underway. Delays cost money and staff time.
And in an emergency, residents need one credible, trusted source of information. That trust isn’t built during the wildfire or the flood. It’s built in the years before, one accurate and useful message at a time.
The short version for council: we make your decisions understandable, and we protect the public’s trust in the institution you now lead.
What we don’t do
This is the part most orientation materials skip, and it’s the part that causes the most friction later. Say it plainly, say it early, and say it before anyone asks.
We don’t work for council. Communications staff work for the organization and report through the CAO. Council gives direction as a body, through its resolutions. Individual members don’t direct staff, and that includes the communications team. If a councillor needs communications support, the request goes through the CAO. When appropriate, the team will provide key messages to assist council members in their roles as spokespeople.
We don’t promote council members. Official municipal channels belong to the public. They aren’t there to raise anyone’s profile, celebrate anyone’s idea, or build anyone’s next campaign. We share what council decided, not who championed it. We don’t manage councillors’ personal social media accounts or write their personal statements.
We engage on municipal issues, not political ones. We explain services, projects, budgets, and decisions within the municipality’s authority. We don’t take sides on provincial or federal politics, party matters, or a member’s personal positions. We report the outcome of the vote, not who won the argument.
None of this is about saying no to council. It’s about protecting council’s credibility. The moment residents see official channels used for politics, they stop trusting all of it.
Five things you can do right now
- Write a one-page “what we do and don’t do” for the orientation package. Keep it in plain language. If it doesn’t fit on one page, council won’t read it. Don’t forget to attach your communications strategy, engagement framework, and all your policies.
- Have your CAO deliver the boundaries. The message carries more weight coming from the top, and it makes clear this is how the organization works, not a personal preference of the communications team.
- Put your communications policy on the orientation agenda. If it’s out of date, update it. If you don’t have one, draft one. When council adopts the policy, the boundaries become theirs, not yours.
- Explain how to ask for help. Show council the request process: who to contact, who approves, and how long things take. A clear path cuts down on side-door requests.
- Offer spokesperson training early. Do it before the first tough interview, not after. Council members who understand how media works are far easier to support, and far less likely to make news for the wrong reasons.
Your new council members don’t need to become communications experts. They need to know you’re there to make the municipality’s work understandable, not to make them famous. Tell them early, tell them plainly, and then show them every day what good public communication looks like.
It’s a lot easier to set that boundary at orientation than in the middle of a fight over a Facebook post.
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