Public agencies and private organizations alike are increasingly aware of the many benefits of involving the public in major projects and policy issues affecting taxpayers, ratepayers and other stakeholders. In addition, many entities are required to engage in public participation as part of various regulatory processes, such as environmental impact analysis, hazardous and radioactive waste cleanup and public utility decision making. Katz & Associates builds project understanding and acceptance for water, transportation, environmental, energy, land use, military and other potentially controversial issues.

• Basing of new military weapons systems
• Constructing/retrofitting energy plants, pipelines and transmission networks
• Dam and flood control projects
• Environmental justice
• Habitat restoration and protection
• Land use master planning
• Off-highway vehicle plans
• Raising taxes and passing bond measures
• Siting new facilities
• Traffic, congestion relief, light rail and highway projects
• Transit service improvements and modifications
• Water resource and watershed planning

Katz & Associates creates communication programs aimed at changing consumer behaviors. We understand the nuances of behavior change programs and employ proven methods that go beyond merely providing information. Through research, we identify key motivators to change behaviors and the social reinforcement mechanisms that will support lasting change.

• Storm water pollution prevention
• Reducing vehicle emissions
• Water conservation
• Voting
• Drunk driving
• Pedestrian safety
• Consumer protection
• Air quality

Katz & Associates recognizes that the bottom line goal of any construction relations effort is to prevent community issues from impacting project schedule and cost. We consistently achieve this for our clients by developing and implementing a structured, hands-on and detailed plan for notifying the impacted business and residential communities, identifying potential issues early on and resolving complaints and trouble as they arise.

• Combined sewer operations
• Water and wastewater facilities
• Energy plants and transmission lines
• Environmental cleanup
• Flood control projects
• Commercial and residential development
• Rail systems
• Road improvements
• School facilities
• Watershed management
• Airport facilities

A water main breaks downtown at rush hour. A construction worker is injured on the job. A newspaper reporter says there is financial mismanagement on your most publicized project. A consumer becomes ill using your product.

Crisis situations often occur when least expected and can take many forms. Being unprepared for a crisis situation can result in termination of a project, loss of jobs, irreparable damage to an organization's reputation. Communication planning is key to ensuring a quick and smooth resolution to public and internal crises and exploding issues.

While advanced planning is always our goal, our staff of experienced crisis managers, strategists and former reporters is on hand 24-hours a day, prepared to assist in resolving your immediate situation.

• Crisis and Issues Plan Development
• Crisis and Issues Training
• Crisis and Issues Management
• Internal Communications
• Staff Support

When risk assessment and risk management decisions must be communicated to the public, it is critical to reach out to community members and stakeholder groups in the right way and at the right time. At Katz & Associates we understand how to use risk communication techniques to achieve durable and timely results.

The goal of risk communication is to maintain or restore public trust and credibility to organizations the public might perceive as putting them at risk. It seeks to address the public's concerns so that individuals can move beyond the blaming stage to become partners in finding a solution. Members of the public become partners when they understand the problem, understand your potential actions and constraints, feel as though they have a say in the matter and trust that you are working with their welfare in mind.

Katz & Associates has extensive experience creating strategic communications programs based on research. Whether you need to increase understanding of a project to avoid costly delays, change consumer behavior or measure the effectiveness of your program, our staff can assist you with creating research components that will successfully meet your communication and measurement objectives.

Our programs are based on information acquired through both primary research (new sources) and secondary research (existing sources). We have first-hand experience developing effective survey instruments that prompt useful information from key audiences. We approach those influencers with effective surveys, audits and interviews.

In today's transforming media landscape, social media plays an increasing role and simply cannot be ignored. While traditional media may be losing readers and viewers, social media is gaining participants and becoming "mainstream" in the number of both outlets and users.

Using social media, Katz & Associates is helping public agencies to reach target audiences and stakeholders as well as reinforce key messages. We manage social media and include it as a viable strategic contributor to client projects.

Putting the "special" into special events — whether it's a small stakeholder meeting or a large, multi-day conference — takes planning, attention to detail, and organization. Katz & Associates plans and executes events of many sizes and purposes on many different budget levels. Based on this experience, we coordinate an event to meet specific project-related goals and objectives while staying within established budgets.

Katz & Associates offers a wide range of training workshops and seminars to meet the needs of government agencies, corporations, and nonprofits. From media relations to construction management to conflict management and public participation, we can train your employees to deal with a variety of situations effectively and efficiently. Training modules include:

• Media and Presentation Training
• Public Participation
• Crisis Communication
• Risk Communication
• Construction Relations
• Conflict Management