How is Societal Engagement organised?
In order to develop a societal engagement plan, three essential aspects have to be addressed:
- The company’s conditions and resources
These are the available skills, knowledge, time, space and budget that can be used for organising societal engagement. It also involves an awareness of underlying expectations and interests, and values in regards to technological innovation. It can also include individual and collective learning for future impact. - The facilitation
When engaging with citizens, you need a skilled facilitator to lead the activities. This is someone who knows how to design a participatory process, by choosing the relevant methods and being able to communicate appropriately with he audience. - The method, activities, tools and materials.
Choosing the appropriate method, with the corresponding activities, tools and materials is crucial in order to
get the desired outcomes.
Considering these three aspects of societal engagement is important to set up the process for success. In this section, we will go into more detail for each of the aspects, giving you insights, recommendations and practical tips.
Which resources are required?
It is often underestimated which resources are needed for societal engagement, so we offer here an overview of the practical requirements of undertaking and organising a societal engagement process.
- MOTIVATION
First of all, there has to be a strong intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to undertake societal engagement. We have
addressed some possible motivational factors in the previous section, and hope that you can find further reasons
when defining your goal why it might be beneficial for you and for society. - TIME
Societal engagement is time intensive as there are several steps that need to be undertaken to make the actual
event a success - FACILITATION
You will need a dedicated person, either i n house or external facilitator, to engage with the citizens in the right way,
using appropriate methods. - NETWORK
Having a network, encompassing both partners for collaboration on societal engagement and connections to
associations or organisations that work directly with citizens, will help in recruiting participants. You will also benefit
from social media channels to reach a wider audience. - BUDGET
A budget might be necessary if you wish to outsource facilitation, rent a space, provide catering and travel
reimbursement and purchase appropriate tools and materials. - SPACE
The location, type of space, and room arrangement are all important to consider when engaging with people.
How do you facilitate activities?
Facilitation of societal engagement activities requires certain skills There are two options to engage citizens: through in house facilitation or by outsourcing the facilitation to professional facilitators. Facilitation skills combine a set of techniques that need to be deployed in particular contexts, but it also demands significant experience in facilitating these encounters. This experience is of utmost importance for dealing with a diversity of participants and in situations where things don’t go as planned. Facilitation requires being both able to plan to use relevant methods and activities, and have the flexibility to know when and how how to steer unexpected situations into the right direction when new opportunities arise at an event. Facilitation profiles and experiences are critical for deploying successfully societal engagement activities around innovative technology. Facilitators develop a significant number of activities oriented to establish a climate of trust, empathy and collaboration.
The role of the facilitator is to:
- Create speculative exercises that allow participants to brainstorm about tangible, potential day
to day scenarios involving innovative technologies in order to stimulate active engagement and brings about new insights. It is not about dissemination of specialised technology to inform participants, because this makes engagement more difficult. - Ensure that a diverse range of perspectives is heard, allowing space for all participants to actively engage, and to focus on nurturing long term relationships and initiatives. It is important to remember that facilitators are not completely neutral, and therefore need to be open to reflect on their own assumptions and expectations, and to be challenged by the participants’ points of view.
- Ensure not only individual, but also collective learning in order to challenge underlying conflicts of interests and redirect these towards a common, long term goal.
Which methods can be used to engage people using in-house facilitation?
Here, we would like to provide insight into the process of designing societal engagement events and offer specific methods, activities, tools and materials for you to employ. There are no right methods for particular technologies, innovations or fields of knowledge, but the choice of method to engage people depends on the goal, the desired outcome(s) and the type of participants. Methods are related to different social dynamics and are needed for establishing connection with people and exploring synergies between participants. Methods have to be chosen according to the various stages of the event that build up the process of engagement, for example starting with an ice-breaker, creating space for sharing perspectives and active listening, providing an inclusive platform for brainstorming and providing adequate tools to find consensus and make the necessary decisions to achieve a clear outcome.
We recommend that you start with simple methods and tools, as this is the best way to familiarise yourself with them. Be aware not to overburden participants with complex dynamics and exercises. Methods and tools are intrinsically intertwined with facilitation skills and experience, and this should be stressed when implementing methods and techniques into the process of societal engagement.
Facilitating a Process of Engagement
Before starting the event
- Define a clear goal and outcome for your workshop.
- Decide on the type of participants that you need to achieve this goal.
- Based on the goal and participants, choose the most relevant method, tools and materials. On the right, we offer relevant methods for you, specially designed for your context and requiring few facilitation skills.
- Decide on the number of facilitators, depending on the number of participants. It is good to have one facilitator per group of up to 7 participants.
- Consider having a note taker and a photographer present at the workshop.
- Prepare a clear introduction for the workshop including personal introduction(s), larger mission, goal of workshop.
- Always bring the following materials with you: a notepad, paper, pens and markers (enough for all participants),
post its.
During the event
- Start every workshop with an icebreaker for the participants to feel at ease.
- Invite discussions through stimulating questions, rather than by educating or informing people.
- Do things actively rather than taking a philosophical approach.
- Clarify how the insights will lead to tangible outcomes.
- At the end of the workshop, summarise or conclude the meeting and tell the participants what the next steps will be.
After the event
- Follow up with the participants with a ‘thank you’ and further information, and ask for feedback.
- Evaluate the event and analyse the feedback in order to improve future events.
- Analyse the outcomes and decide how to use the outcomes further.
Goal:
Outcome
SOCKETS-COCREATION.EU
The Tech Industry’s Guide has been created as part of the EU-funded SocKETs project, which aims to align innovative technologies with citizens’ needs and values through societal engagement. This 3-year project is coordinated by the Danish Board of Technology with partners from six countries.
This guide and its contents reflect only their authors’ view. The Research Executive Agency and the European Commission are not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained herein.
The SocKETs project (Societal Engagement with Key Enabling Technologies) has received funding from the European Union´s Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation under grant agreement no.958277.
Outsourcing Facilitation
If you wish to use the services of a professional facilitator, you can try finding a local expert through a professional network of facilitators. For example, the International Association of Facilitators (www.iaf-world.org/site) is a worldwide community of certified facilitators with members all over the world. Other national networks might exist in your country. Different consultancies and companies might also provide facilitation services
 |
 |
In-house Facilitation
If you wish to undertake in-house facilitation, this guide provides several easy methods and suggestions for tools and materials. In-house facilitation requires a person with people skills, rather than specialised tech expertise. Involving too much technological expertise might prevent participants from being engaged. In order to minimize barriers, it is critical to reflect on ways to design the societal engagement process in such a way that technological knowledge is not a precondition of participation; thus, helping a wider range of societal actors to be engaged.
It is crucial to check expectations with all parties involved in the organising of the societal engagement, for example defining clear roles and responsibilities, the goal and desired outcomes.
The focus on the goal is different than on specific outcomes: on a business level, all involved parties need to be aligned on the overall vision—e.g. why are we doing this in the first place? Setting a clear goal will help your company to work towards a shared vision with citizens, and potentially create a shared mission together.
When initiating societal engagement practices at your company, keep the focus on long-term impact rather than generating short-term impact.
 |
 |
Case example: reflecting internally on societal engagement
When designing and carrying out social engagement activities, it is important to keep reflecting on the process. A good example of this is seen in the project case of our partners in Serbia, led by the Centre for the Promotion of Science (CPN), that focused on the challenges identified around the use of advanced technologies in the healthcare sector, especially on introducing an online medical system in the country. To examine the challenges, they held three workshops with three different objectives. During the process, they asked relevant questions about what they would get out of social engagement and how to do it. These questions helped in defining a clear goal for social engagement, to be aware of their available resources and to plan their activities.
Questions asked in the lab:
- What are the potential obstacles in carrying out this activity and how to overcome them?
- Which stakeholders could participate in the implementation of the activity and why would it be in their interest?
- In what specific ways, in cooperation with your organization, would the stakeholders contribute to the implementation of this activity?
- List the resources within your organization that would contribute to the implementation of this activity.
- How much time do you think it takes to carry out this activity in the planned way and why?
- What are your expectations regarding the results of the implementation of this activity and what would be your next steps?
Questions to consider
To answer the following questions about your company’s current practice on engaging with citizens, use the direct link below for the relevant page in the PDF Guidebook..
- Which new skills do you need to facilitate an event and engage better with citizens?
- Which additional resources do you need to organise societal engagement events?
- What kind of support do you need from your colleagues?
- What expectations do you have about the desired outcomes in doing more societal engagement?
- What do these expectations tell me about certain values and assumptions I hold towards
technology?
Case example: good use of a method towards clear outcomes
The third workshop was organised with as goal to hear citizens’ perceptions about ageing and how eHealth products impact on their daily lives. The workshop engaged elderly citizens and representatives from an eHealth company.
The workshop consisted of several activities, starting with an icebreaker, a project presentation and a general discussion about eHealth. The next activity included a provocative video on the subject that stimulated a discussion followed by questions to facilitate the discussion. After that, the company presented their products which were subsequently discussed. At the end of the workshop, everyone was invited to evaluate the event.
The overall feedback was that the workshop created a good platform for discussing ethical issues regarding ageing and eHealth. Both the citizens and company felt they got something out of participating in the event.
Method: The Icebreaker
 |
Goal: |
 |
Requirements: 1h, any group size |
 |
Preparation: |
 |
Tools and materials: |
 |
Description: [rewrite] “Brainwriting is a tool for generating ideas and solutions to a problem. You ask participants to write down their ideas about a particular question or problem on sheets of paper for a few minutes; then, you have each participant pass their ideas on to someone else, who reads the ideas and adds new ideas. After a few minutes, you ask the participants to pass their papers to others, and the process repeats. After 10 to 15 minutes, you collect the sheets and post them for immediate discussion.” |
 |
Activity: |
 |
How to use the outcomes of this method: |
Mind Mapping Associations
(adapted from the visual mindmap method)
|
Goal: |
|
Requirements: This method requires <30 minutes and any group size. Ideally, there is a diversity of citizens and/or social actors to bring in as many associations as possible. |
|
Preparation: Invite a diversity of social actors and/or citizens. Clarify form the outset that the goal is to brainstorm on as many associations as possible in regard to the new technology that is the focus of your company’s newest developments. |
|
Tools and materials: post-it notes, markers and pens, and a large sheet of paper on the table (two or three A0 sheets attached together) with the following categories on it in bubbles spread over the sheet: social media, popular entertainment, literature, news. |
|
Description:Mind mapping is a method to structure thoughts and, if using a visual approach, to categorise associations in order to share it with others. By noting down all the associations we have with tech development, we realise what kind of information is out there, how it shapes our thinking, reveals why our perspectives are different and where biases might stem from. |
|
Activity: |
|
How to use the outcomes of this method: The mind mapping of associations can be followed by a workshop on the challenges and opportunities that the new technology offers, through the Challenging Your Technology method described next. |
The Assumptions Exchange
(adapted from the visual mindmap method)
|
Goal: |
|
Requirements: This method requires 1-2 hours and a group size of up to 10 people (half social actors and half tech company employees) |
|
Preparation: Invite a group of social actors to participate in a workshop to highlight the assumptions present from the tech’s view and society’s view. The participants are ideally from the same societal organisation, sharing a similar perspective and interest in your technology. The introductions at the beginning can focus on… |
|
Tools and materials: Paper and pens. |
|
Description: |
|
Activity: This activity starts with a short presentation of the innovative technology, max. 5 minutes, by |
|
How to use the outcomes of this method: |
Challenging Your Technology
|
Goal: |
|
Requirements: This method requires 1-2 hours and a group size of up to 10 people. Ideally, there is a diversity of social actors to bring in different perspectives. |
|
Preparation: Invite a diversity of social actors or citizens to participate in the SWOT workshop. Clarify form the outset that the goal is to share and discuss personal perspectives on the challenges and opportunities of new technologies (here you can be specific, mentioning the technology that you wish to focus on). |
|
Tools and materials: large paper with the SWOT matrix on it (A0 hanging on the wall), post-it notes, markers and pens |
|
Description: SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Usually, this strategy focuses onE thxame dpevleloe: peHmentealt of ha company or business, but here it will focus on the development of the innovative technology: what are its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats? |
|
Activity: Create with a thick black marker the SWOT matrix and hang it on the wall. Give all participants |
|
How to use the outcomes of this method: |
Brainwriting
|
Goal: |
|
Requirements: 1h, any group size |
|
Preparation: |
|
Tools and materials: |
|
Description: [rewrite] “Brainwriting is a tool for generating ideas and solutions to a problem. You ask participants to write down their ideas about a particular question or problem on sheets of paper for a few minutes; then, you have each participant pass their ideas on to someone else, who reads the ideas and adds new ideas. After a few minutes, you ask the participants to pass their papers to others, and the process repeats. After 10 to 15 minutes, you collect the sheets and post them for immediate discussion.” |
|
Activity: |
|
How to use the outcomes of this method: |
What If Tech Could…
(adapted from the ‘I Like, I Wish, What If ’ Method)
|
Goal: |
|
Requirements: This method requires <30 minutes and any group size. Ideally, there is a diversity of citizens and/or social actors to bring in as many ideas as possible. |
|
Preparation: Invite a group of citizens or social actors to participate in this feedback and brainstorm activity. It is preceded by a short presentation of a specific product developed by your company.
The introductions at the beginning can focus on… |
|
Tools and materials: |
|
Description: [rewrite] “Brainwriting is a tool for generating ideas and solutions to a problem. You ask participants to write down their ideas about a particular question or problem on sheets of paper for a few minutes; then, you have each participant pass their ideas on to someone else, who reads the ideas and adds new ideas. After a few minutes, you ask the participants to pass their papers to others, and the process repeats. After 10 to 15 minutes, you collect the sheets and post them for immediate discussion.” |
|
Activity: This activity starts with a short presentation of the innovative technology, max. 10 minutes, by someone from your company. Without going into technical details, the presentation explains the purpose of the technology. |
|
How to use the outcomes of this method: |
Roleplaying
(Adapted from 6 thinking hats and the angel method)
|
Goal: |
|
Requirements: 1h, any group size |
|
Preparation: |
|
Tools and materials: |
|
Description: [needs rewriting, so that tech and social actors swap roles to be challenged to think from the opposite perspective, thereby gaining understanding and empathy] “The 6 Thinking Hats is a classic ideation technique that you to learn how to separate thinking into six clear functions and roles. Each thinking role is identified with a coloured symbolic “thinking hat.” By mentally wearing and switching “hats,” you can easily focus or redirect thoughts, conversation, or the meeting.” |
|
Activity: |
|
How to use the outcomes of this method: |