Reinvent: LMC Roadmap to Recovery – Sell your vision

For organisations driven by a clear agenda for change and ready to pursue their purpose, the Roadmap to Recovery’s ‘Reinvent’ phase is written for you. The CLC is urging you to promote your work across three key themes: transformation, value and partnerships.

Political kudos is being given to those in construction who are adopting digital and manufacturing technologies to transform the industry. This is in addition to those who are delivering strategic objectives on net zero, levelling up and building safety. The potential efficiencies created by these technologies are estimated to be worth somewhere between £7bn and £15bn a year.

Offsite construction is one of the most obvious celebrities of the ‘Reinvent’ phase and is likely to remain highly newsworthy for at least the next couple of years.

Procurement is also highlighted as critical for this phase, with a lot of interest in the Construction Innovation Hub’s Value Toolkit. This encourages procurement for the right outcomes and best value, not just lowest cost.

Post-Grenfell, this is a narrative that we all hope will be sustained. The Value Toolkit will become a suite of robust and practical tools that will enable evidence-based decision-making across the whole investment lifecycle. It has the potential to act as a catalyst to change behaviour from the top to bottom of the industry.

Also in ‘Reinvent’ is a big push for energy efficiency, and a reminder of all the earlier themes in the Roadmap, including collaboration, training and safety. There are many opportunities here to take a leadership position.

So who will be remembered as the heroes of the ‘Reinvent’ phase? How will the new ideas and innovations tip over into mass market adoption and deliver lasting change in the industry? That, to a large extent, depends upon effective communication.

We know that there are already many companies, joint ventures and industry groups getting on with transformation. Spurred on by the saying ‘never let a good crisis go to waste’, they have progressed their plans with extra vigour over the lockdown period.

If you are one of those organisations, intelligent PR, targeted digital communication and meaningful stakeholder engagement will play a pivotal role in establishing your leadership status.

Here are some tips on maximising the marketing potential of your initiatives in the true spirit of the Roadmap to Recovery:

• Where possible, tell the story collaboratively. A tale of innovation works best when it is told from multiple perspectives, so stress the benefits for all parts of the supply chain. To be able to change and grow as an industry, we cannot continue to operate in our individual silos. Instead, we need to communicate and share our best practice much better.
• Tell the story visually. Seeing is believing, so seek out opportunities for video, animations and infographics.
• Build in some emotion. Change is not easy, and like every great episode of Grand Designs there is always the moment of ‘jeopardy’ – the point where everything looks like it may go to pot. If you want your story to be memorable, don’t leave out the suspense! Take your reader on a journey and position your customer as the hero of the story.
• Look for virtual networks to help spread your knowledge and insights. Traditionally, trade shows, industry events, conferences, exhibitions and awards have been ideal venues to showcase new ideas and to build new contacts and relationships. But with so many events curtailed for now, this networking has moved online. Make use of online events, webinars and podcasts instead, all of which have boomed during lockdown.
• If in doubt, LinkedIn is a great place to start. Regular posts with pictures or video clips that communicate what you are trying to do (and why) are likely to generate a lot of interest. If you do get comments make sure that you respond to them, and follow up expressions of interest. This is a relatively easy way to build up your contacts, expand your network and showcase your expertise.
• Harness the influence of your trade association, professional institute or other membership body. Industry groups have played an important part in continuing the CLC’s work. Many are also involved in the sectoral working groups that will drive forward implementation of the recovery plan. Look for opportunities to share your stories of reinvention through their communications channels too.

Most importantly, our message is to start building your communication plan now. The successful delivery of the recovery depends upon it.