Business challenge
Northern Gas Networks (NGN) wanted to ensure that its RIIO-GD2 business plan was well informed by insights gathered from a substantial evidence base reflecting customers’ and stakeholders’ values and preferences.
Impact were engaged to lead or support multiple aspects of NGN’s RIIO-GD2 business planning work over a period of 24 months.
What we did
Impact produced a stakeholder map identifying under-represented groups/seldom heard voices including customers in vulnerable circumstances.
We then created a 12-month delivery plan for collecting the requisite evidence base. For the research we conducted, we used a range of engagement approaches to gather insights into stakeholders needs and requirements across six thematic areas that were tailored to ensure they met the needs of the audiences, and the specific objectives.
In total, Impact generated over 20,000 bespoke inputs, representing every segment of NGN’s stakeholder community. These included insights from qualitative and quantitative research and WtP studies which we triangulated with operational data and third-party sources.
Impact also provided substantial ongoing strategic and tactical consultancy.
Outcome
The RIIO-2 Challenge Group Inedpendent Report for Ofgem on RIIO-2 Business Plans, published in January 2020, stated:
NGN’s Plan presents a thorough and well-articulated approach to stakeholder
engagement. It quotes compelling extracts from a recent independent audit of its stakeholder engagement approach against the AA1000SE standard that describes its approach as representing ‘best practice’.The impact of stakeholder engagement on the Plan is well evidenced. The Plan includes a clear discussion of trade-offs and provides evidence that this triangulation of views has led to some moderation of its proposals.
Melanie Taylor, Head of Stakeholder Engagement at NGN said:
Across the board Impact have worked hand in hand with our team to create engagement materials that are compelling, relevant and easy to access for our stakeholders. In the context of a fast-changing landscape, they have worked collaboratively with colleagues across the business to ensure that engagement provides the right evidence to underpin our plans. Crucially, final reporting has been of an extremely high quality, presented to our CEG and internal colleagues.