Corporate Philosophy: Turning Resistance Into Innovation

While regulatory boards and agencies are sometimes labeled as “faceless bureaucracies,” they are in fact public entities composed of individuals trying their best to interpret and enforce complex statutes. They believe in their roles and bring their personal values, goals, and aspirations to the job. And like anyone else, they want their values to be honored and their roles to be respected.

In my many years working with policy, planning and regulatory agencies, I have found that most of the conflict and mistrust between regulatory boards and applicants arises from poor communication and a lack of understanding of one another’s values and goals. To be sure, not all conflicts and value differences can be resolved simply through communication. But those differences can be eased, and the regulatory process can be made less contentious and – most importantly – faster and more efficient.

Our approach to helping our clients get through the regulatory process is one of seeking to understand the goals and positions of these regulatory agencies, quickly identifying potential conflicts, and working to resolve them through respectful, direct communication and negotiation. In this way, we highlight the interests – rather than the positions – of the involved parties and seek creative, mutually beneficial solutions that go beyond a strict interpretation of the rules. We build a relationship of trust that turns resistance into innovation.