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Our Work

Presentation Center

Slide Clean Up for North American Export Grain Association

Before

After

  1. NAEGA had a big presentation to their leadership team on U.S.—China Relations. Their economist provided a deck that lacked context and professional graphics.
  2. National Journal restyled the deck and created new data visualizations, improving clarity and comprehensibility.
  3. NAEGA was able to use the revamped slides during his presentation later that same week.

Urban Institute’s Presentation on California Gubernatorial Race

  1. Urban Institute needed to brief their government affairs office on California’s 2018 gubernatorial race. It specified that the deck should include short bios of the candidates and summaries of the political trends impacting the race.
  2. The Presentation Center team researched the candidates and political trends, illustrated the data, and packaged it in a sleek deck.
  3. Urban Institute was able to use the deck to brief stakeholders within the week.

Real Estate Association

  1. An association contacted National Journal looking for information on the use of tax itemization and mortgage deductions in Wisconsin. The association asked for to be data broken down by locality and then mapped.
  2. National Journal conducted the desired research, segmented the data down by county, and created visually stunning maps to illustrate the findings.
  3. The association was pleased with the result and has continued to use Presentation Center Concierge.

Prudential’s Washington Update

  1. Prudential’s Washington office needed to brief their senior leadership on the state of affairs in Washington and to provide a look ahead to 2018. They specified what policy issues they needed to cover, including fiduciary rule, financial regulations, the debt crisis, and tax reform.
  2. National Journal conducted research according to the prescribed criteria, generated graphics, and organized the information into a 28-slide update on Prudential’s policy priorities.
  3. Prudential’s team used this deck to demonstrate their work in 2017 and to plan for 2018.

Network Science Initiative

Tax Reform Case

  1. A large national association needed ways to better anticipate, prepare for, and influence tax reform outcomes by leveraging the networks of stakeholders shaping tax debates. It needed viable strategies to educate and/or develop partnerships with relevant stakeholders.
  2. NSI conducted an in-depth study of influencers connected to tax policy within government, academia, research and advocacy institutions, and the private sector. NSI then identified key players, uncovered the professional and social networks connecting those players, and illuminated viable pathways to influence.
  3. NSI delivered a comprehensive briefing book containing insights into tax reform influencer networks, narrative summaries of individual and organizational network connections and policy positions, and actionable strategies to reach and influence leading policymakers.

Discovering Allies and Building Strategies

  1. A health care company needed:
    • A comprehensive picture of influencers in wearable fitness and health tracking technology and emerging policy.
    • Clear opportunities for partnerships with third-party influencers.
    • Viable short and long-term strategies for engagement, to position itself as a major influencer on this topic.

2. NSI studied influencers connected to the wearable tech industry, including those within government, academia, research and advocacy institutions, and the private sector. NSI then identified key players, uncovered the professional and social networks connected  those players, and illuminated viable pathways to influence.

3. NSI delivered a briefing book that included network maps, policy narratives, deep profiles of influencers’ backgrounds and policy positions, opportunity analysis, and executive summaries.

Ballast Research

Tailoring Corporate Responsibility Initiatives for a Policymaker Audience

  1. Organizations invest millions of dollars each year in philanthropic work, but these efforts do not always translate to a policymaker audience. Our members wondered, how do we ensure our philanthropic work improves policymakers’ perceptions of our organization and of our Corporate Social Responsibility commitments?
  2. Ballast conducted interviews with policymakers and collected thousands of data points showing that one of the keys to getting credit for the work that your organization is already doing is customizing the impact of that work to the individual policymaker.
  3. Ballast worked directly with a number of its clients to customize their corporate responsibility work and integrate it with their advocacy materials in order to have maximum impact on their long-term reputations.

A Framework for Measuring Advocacy Success

  1. For as long as government affairs offices have existed, they’ve wondered:
    • What makes for effective advocacy? Can it be measured?
    • What do government policymakers really want from their private sector colleagues?
    • What matters to them?  What doesn’t?
    • What are they getting from us?  What are they getting from others?
  2. Our annual research answers these questions by asking policymakers for their direct and candid feedback, over time.  As a result of our regular engagement with senior decision makers, we have identified the set of factors that most easily distinguish advocates and best serve their intended audience.
  3. Based on our years of research, we have identified (a) how to measure actual effectiveness, as opposed to perceived effectiveness and (b) the limited set of investments that are likely to produce the highest return for any advocacy organization