This article originally appeared on LinkedIn.
It’s striking how Middle Eastern government affairs leads at technology companies outline the same three frustrations:
I. “I’ve got a full-plate and don’t have time to prioritize lawmaking. I want a light-touch, high-impact government affairs consultant that can be my ‘arms and legs’ for a couple months, but I’ve looked extensively, and am frustrated by the lack of knowledgeable consultants who truly ‘get’ MENA government affairs in the technology industry.”
II. “Expensive, Western-based ‘white-shoe’ policy consulting firms provide little direct impact or ‘value-for-money” in my job. Western-based firms may know general Middle Eastern politics, but not the technology industry’s business-relevant local policy issues.”
III. The structure of government affairs in many technology companies is changing. Policy teams increasingly favor access over ownership for a number of reasons: Developing MENA policy research from scratch takes too long and is becoming obsolete. It’s not clear what do you do with the MENA policy research that you’ve commissioned after you’ve used it with external stakeholders, when, for a small monthly fee, you can just customize research whenever you need it.
“Renting” or “subscribing” to research is a little like when repairing something in your home. Instead of buying a saw or a hammer that you’ll use once, users pay a simple monthly fee to borrow tools and return them when they’re done. Thus you become a lot less reliant on outright buying things, you spend less and obtain a lot more financial flexibility.
The difference between getting a policy research subscription and outright buying a consulting engagement is a little like getting married: Before rushing into something permanent, most rising professionals want to take it slow and date a bit first, before being locked into something permanent.
The context is the world is moving from products to services, and technology companies’ policy leads are increasingly “renting” government affairs subscriptions with specific, focused research you need to do your job. You don’t have to go to all the bother of creating studies/reports, research from scratch and wait 3 months to get a major study because we’ve done it. Having a subscription is more efficient because you get what you need – when you need it.
Government Affairs Managers: Don’t think – know and act.
You already know what you have to do and you know how to do it. What’s stopping you? Rather than analyzing and thinking, trust yourself. Laser-focus.
Read article on LinkedIn.
