Meet MosaicLab
Nicole Hunter
FUNNY, UNUSUAL, MYSTERIOUS: MOMENTS FROM 2024

As 2024 wraps up, our facilitation team is sharing their standout moments. From mysteriously missing catering and questionable gong skills to a surprise bush trek under the stars, 2024 had its fair share of laughs, twists, and unforgettable memories.

FUNNY, UNUSUAL, MYSTERIOUS: MOMENTS FROM 2024
Case studies
Nicole Hunter
CASE STUDY: CITY OF MELBOURNE AFFORDABLE ...

The City of Melbourne views affordable housing as crucial infrastructure for maintaining a liveable, inclusive, and prosperous city. With a projected shortfall of 23,200 affordable homes by 2036, immediate action is needed to address this long-standing issue. While there is broad community support for affordable housing, acceptance often wanes at the neighbourhood level. To tackle this, a People’s Panel of 39 diverse community members was established to represent local perspectives.

CASE STUDY: CITY OF MELBOURNE AFFORDABLE HOUSING PANEL
Meet MosaicLab
Nicole Hunter
TEAM SPOTLIGHT: POLO, POLLY & GUS

A support facilitator studying psychology, our first team member based in NSW and a brand new participant recruitment coordinator... meet the newest additions to the MosaicLab team: Polo, Polly and Gus! Learn more about this trio of terrific team members and gain some insights into who they REALLY are through their answers to our fast five questions!

TEAM SPOTLIGHT: POLO, POLLY & GUS
Case studies
Nicole Hunter
CASE STUDY: THE TALE OF TWO ENERGY SECTOR ...

How should we plan for the new energy future while providing affordable services that meet changing customer and community needs? Two representative ‘Voice of the Customer’ panels in Queensland answered this question. Randomly selected, everyday customers deliberated and agreed on recommendations that electricity distributors Ergon Energy Network and Energex used to prepare Regulatory Proposals for the Australian Energy Regulator (AER).  Delve into a tale of two deliberative customer panels, and gain ideas and insights you can draw on for your next project.

CASE STUDY: THE TALE OF TWO ENERGY SECTOR CUSTOMER PANELS
Meet MosaicLab, ML Giving
Nicole Hunter
SUPPORTING CONVERSATIONS WHERE THEY'RE NEEDED ...

We believe in supporting emerging and underserved people and communities to have deeper conversations that lead to stronger democracies. ML Giving is the new name of the not-for-profit part of MosaicLab - a banner for the work we do that gives back. We’re focussing on furthering community inclusion and action beyond just getting input and instead moving into enabling local decision-making. Explore the principles ML Giving will operate under, and the kind of projects and conversations we’re supporting.

SUPPORTING CONVERSATIONS WHERE THEY'RE NEEDED MOST

tips

10 TIPS FOR ENGAGING THROUGH DIFFICULT TIMES & HIGH ANXIETY

10 TIPS FOR ENGAGING THROUGH DIFFICULT TIMES & HIGH ANXIETY

Facing community crises at any time is difficult. When there are ‘concurrent crises’ it makes it even more challenging and complex to respond and engage.

Community members can feel disturbed, frightened or anxious. At the same time, organisations are also grappling with how to adjust, change and continue to move forward. There is value in continuous connections.

For those who missed our first ‘continuous connections’ webinar, we’ve pulled our top 10 tips for engaging through difficult times & working with high anxiety into a free, downloadable resource.

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DILEMMA DISCUSSED: 'HOSTILE' AUDIENCES (PART 2)

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DILEMMA DISCUSSED: 'HOSTILE' AUDIENCES (PART 2)

Late last year we published the first post in a two-part series on dealing with this ‘subscriber dilemma’. In part one we explored how to plan for conflict, outrage and emotion when you know it’s likely to arise. Today, in part two, we’re providing 10 tips for working with high emotion in the moment – when you didn’t expect or plan for it at all.

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#MONTHLYMYTH: FOCUSING ON THE FEW

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#MONTHLYMYTH: FOCUSING ON THE FEW

It’s important to consider and tailor your engagement approach to ensure you meet the needs of all stakeholders, and that includes those who have the most to say.  

This mistake, however , lies in forgetting about everyone else. Suddenly, you realise the needs and opinions of a few have demanded time, attention and resources at the expense of the rest of your stakeholders or community.

Today we’re addressing this myth by providing 9 ways to ensure diverse perspectives make it into your next process.

#MonthlyMyth: Tables enhance conversation

#MonthlyMyth: Tables enhance conversation

We are often drawn towards what we know – it’s comfortable sticking to what we are used to doing, seeing and experiencing.  However, when it comes to engagement, sometimes comfortable doesn’t equal effective, and this month’s myth is a perfect example.

#MonthlyMyth: Build it (online) and they will come

#MonthlyMyth: Build it (online) and they will come

Online tools are an important part of the modern engagement landscape.  They offer a broad range of benefits from ease and flexibility of access to handy data analysis options.   They can be absolutely worth the investment, and are integral parts of most successful, contemporary engagement processes. 

However, it's a mistake to think that a great online platform or tool alone will solve all your engagement problems or attract high levels of participation - no matter how much you spent on building it or how long you spent on perfecting it. 

This monthly myth touches on a mistake that is pretty easy to make and can catch organisations out, leaving them without much of a return on what can be a significant investment.

#MonthlyMyth: Tight communication reins = risk minimisation

#MonthlyMyth: Tight communication reins = risk minimisation

Many organisations try to minimise risk by 'holding the reins tight' when it comes to communicating with their communities and stakeholders around engagement processes and major projects/decisions. 

This so-called 'risk averse' approach tends to include carefully constructing tightly worded (yet often very uninformative) key messages and strictly withholding any information deemed potentially inflammatory or uncomfortable - even when inextricably relevant to the issue at hand.

There's also approval processes applied to the release of any information, which can slow down communication activities - sometimes to a considerable extent - depending on how rigid or intricate these processes are. 

While organisations tend to feel comfortable with this well-worn approach, the promise of 'safety' through control is generally just an illusion.  

11 ADVISORY COMMITTEE CHALLENGES & HOW TO OVERCOME THEM

11 ADVISORY COMMITTEE CHALLENGES & HOW TO OVERCOME THEM

Advisory committees – we love them and we hate them – and we can’t stop setting them up. They're possibly the number one method of engagement in Australia.

When used effectively, these groups (also called stakeholder/community reference groups and a whole host of other titles) can provide an opportunity to gather local knowledge and input, test ideas and proposals and improve communication and relationships.  However, when used improperly, run poorly, or put in place as a substitute for a comprehensive engagement process, they can create more risk than reward.

This post will help you to overcome some of the biggest challenges associated with advisory committees, and ensure that both organisation and group benefits from the experience.

#MONTHLYMYTH - EVERYDAY CITIZENS & COMPLEX TOPICS

#MONTHLYMYTH - EVERYDAY CITIZENS & COMPLEX TOPICS

Welcome to our February #MonthlyMyth post!  Today, we're exploring a commonly held belief that prevents many organisations from engaging in a meaningful way with citizens around complex, technical or information-rich issues. 

This one misconception can reduce an engagement process to a surface exercise without any real outcomes, create unintended and less than desirable consequences down the track and even prevent a potentially valuable engagement process from happening altogether. 

So let's get into it - what can everyday citizens REALLY handle and should we ask them to handle it?

INSIGHTS INTO PECHA KUCHA – THE ART OF CONCISE PRESENTATIONS

INSIGHTS INTO PECHA KUCHA – THE ART OF CONCISE PRESENTATIONS

The MosaicLab team is regularly involved in events that feature speakers and presentations.  As we all know, regular old PowerPoint presentations can sometimes be a little lengthy, dull and un-engaging.  So, to shake things up and ensure each presentation really connects with the audience, we often encourage the speakers we work with to adopt a very high-energy, fast-paced style of presenting known as Pecha Kucha ...