Resources
Sample materials you can adapt, and guidance on working with a consultant.
Sample materials
Sample interview guide
A starting point for conversations with residents. Adapt it for your own project using the guidance in Getting good input.
DownloadSample consent form
A brief, easy-to-read consent form that explains key information, including recording.
DownloadIf you hire it out, here's what to look for.
As city and county staff, you're well equipped to do resident engagement, and you'll get better at it with experience.
Be specific about what you want to learn
Although a consultant can design and run the research, the more specific you can be about the goals the better. Start with the decision: what decisions will this work inform?
If the scope merely says "conduct resident engagement," it won't be as useful as if you say why you're doing resident engagement. E.g., "Conduct resident engagement to understand why some residents don't do x and what we can do about it." If a proposal says they'll conduct four focus groups and a survey without specifying the questions they're going to answer, it's describing activity rather than findings.
Ask for:
- The decisions the work will inform
- Who they'll talk to, and how they'll reach people who don't usually participate
- What they'll do to surface useful information beyond what people report
- Compensation for participants
- Findings tied to decisions
Know what good findings look like
When the work comes back, good findings:
- Connect each finding to something you could do differently
- Show what each finding is based on, and separate what people said from what they did
- Say who the consultant reached and who they didn't
- Name what surprised them, including anything that cuts against your current plans
Ask for a working session to talk through the findings and decide what to do, not just a final report.
Participate in the process
You don't need to run the resident engagement, but tag along on some of it so that you can hear firsthand what residents are saying. Hearing it live gives you a much deeper understanding, and especially combined with your expertise, may prompt valuable ideas and insights.