Making Strategic Choices in Public Affairs: A Framework for Balancing Global, Regional, and Local Needs
When I started working in-house in a public affairs role after working in the European Parliament, I assumed that I would spend most of my time and effort on the core parts of public affairs—such as meeting stakeholders, gathering insights, and drafting positions.
What I didn’t fully appreciate was just how significant and demanding the internal side of public affairs would be.
Coming from a policy and politics background hadn’t prepared me for the complexity of navigating competing internal demands and aligning across different parts of the organisation. When I moved into a regional public affairs role, I quickly saw the pressures more clearly.
There’s an ongoing need to align public affairs initiatives with broad, strategic corporate goals—think global sustainability ambitions or long-term competitiveness—while also supporting local market teams who are grappling with very tangible, immediate, and often highly specific challenges, such as regulatory changes or market access issues.
These competing internal demands come in many forms, including:
Managing alignment between global/corporate priorities, regional policy and political realities, and specific local needs.
Navigating complex decision-making processes involving hierarchical structures and layered reporting lines.
Balancing the interests and input of different internal functions, each with their own priorities.
Dealing with information overload and siloed working, which limits the flow of insights and feedback essential for forming robust policy positions and strategic responses.
Trying to strike the right balance between local adaptation and global consistency.
Developing materials, positions, projects, and programmes that work across an organisation with diverse needs and expectations.
Balancing these demands can feel like an challenging task. Public affairs teams must deliver strategic insights for global headquarters, collaborate effectively across regions, and support local markets in a way that is meaningful, timely, and tailored.
It’s no surprise that public affairs professionals risk being more focused on internal alignment and managing competing priorities than on the external stakeholder engagement and policy work.
Introducing the Three Cs Framework
To address these challenges, I've found it helpful to adapt and apply a strategic framework I call the Three Cs Framework: Customisation, Consistency, and Cross-Leverage. This framework offers three approaches that can be combined or adapted depending on your needs.
It’s unlikely that a one-size-fits-all approach will work in complex organisations – so feel free to mix and match the approaches.
What's essential is to align and engage with your internal stakeholders so they understand why a particular approach has been chosen, how it will benefit them—and just as importantly, it won't be able to address.
1. Customisation
Issue addressed: Local markets have unique needs and political landscapes that global strategies don't always cover.
How it helps: Customisation is about tailoring your public affairs approach to suit specific market conditions, regulatory requirements, and stakeholder expectations. This makes your initiatives more relevant and impactful at a local level.
When it works best:
When local regulatory environments differ significantly from global standards.
When stakeholder expectations or priorities vary dramatically by region or market.
When it won’t work:
When applied in isolation without coordination, potentially leading to fragmented strategies and mixed messaging.
When you need to build a coherent corporate brand or position across markets or regions.
Essential elements for success:
Empowered local or regional teams with autonomy and the capability to adapt appropriately.
An agile approach to developing and implementing strategies, and managing budgets and resources.
2. Consistency
Issue addressed: The need to maintain coherence, credibility, and strategic alignment across multiple markets and teams.
How it helps: Consistency ensures your public affairs messaging, positioning, and reporting align across different markets, clearly and effectively reflecting the global corporate agenda.
When it works best:
When facing cross-border regulatory issues or campaigns requiring aligned corporate positions.
For maintaining credibility and trust among a broad range of stakeholders.
When it won’t work:
When applied too rigidly, reducing flexibility and effectiveness at a local level and limiting responsiveness.
Essential elements for success:
Clear internal communications and coordinated planning mechanisms.
Unified yet flexible reporting and monitoring frameworks.
3. Cross-Leverage
Issue addressed: Limited resources, capability gaps, and the need to share best practices across markets.
How it helps: Cross-Leverage means actively utilising differences across teams and markets—such as varied skill sets, expertise, or insights—to enhance your overall public affairs capability and impact.
When it works best:
When resources (people, expertise, budgets) are limited and efficiencies must be found.
When you can leverage successful insights or experiences from one market to benefit others.
When it won’t work:
When teams operate in silos or significant internal competition discourages collaboration.
Essential elements for success:
Established channels and a culture for sharing knowledge and best practices.
Leadership that actively promotes collaboration across regions and functions.
Managing internal complexity while driving external impact is one of the most difficult balancing acts in public affairs. The Three Cs Framework offers a practical way to navigate these tensions—helping you structure your approach, prioritise effectively, and work with greater clarity across global, regional, and local teams.
If you’re looking to strengthen your public affairs strategy, build internal alignment, or develop a more adaptive and collaborative way of working, I’d be happy to explore how this framework could be tailored to your needs.
Feel free to connect or drop me a message—I’d love to exchange ideas on how you're navigating these challenges in your organisation.
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