Lobbyists. When you see that word, if you are like most people, you get a negative reaction. The recent Jack Abramoff
scandals do not help the image of the profession. But we don’t have to look at lobbying as a negative.
Did you know that Ben Franklin was this country’s first lobbyist? It’s true. He lobbied on America’s behalf for France to
get involved in our Revolutionary War. It obviously worked and you know the rest of the story. And guess what, even today, you are still
benefiting from Ben’s efforts.
So what is lobbying? Lobbying, in the professional sense, is nothing more than advocating for or against certain policies
within government. Ultimately it is nothing more than selling – selling ideas. And a lot of selling is based on relationships. This is true
with lobbying as well.
This month I begin a series of articles on how lobbyists have effectively used networking to advance their
organization’s members’ agenda.
And when looking to lobbying organizations, why not talk to the most effective ones. So for this month, let’s begin with an
interview I conducted with NFIB Regulatory Policy Manager Andrew Langer. The NFIB, which stands for National Federation of Independent
Businesses, is considered by many to be one of the most effective lobbying organizations in the country.
Question: Very briefly, could you give an example of how having the right contacts have benefited the membership
of the NFIB?
Knowing who to call, and having a relationship with those people, greatly speeds the response time for our members when
crises arise. In March, NFIB members in Missouri were faced with a looming deadline on a policy issue having to do with a lake being
managed by a federal agency. Though it was the first time I had heard about the issue, I immediately called an old networking contact of mine
who deals with that agency on a regular basis. She, in turn, reminded me of an old acquaintance who had been made a senior official with that
agency.
I called that person, was quickly able to apprise him of our members’ concerns. Because we had a long-standing
relationship, he was able to rely on the accuracy of my information, and arranged for a number of “town hall” style meetings for my members to
directly air their grievances with the agency. Though the train was appearing to have long left the station, our members’ concerns came
through so clearly and effectively that the agency began to rethink its policy action.
Without those contacts, I doubt we would have been able to make our case as quickly.
Question: The NFIB has been frequently sited as one of the most effective lobbying organizations in the country, could
you share with us why you think that is?
The great strength of NFIB is its members. The number and quality of our members nationwide, who testify before
governmental and legislative bodies and are activists in the political system, are the real power of our organization. These small-business
owners provide our lobbyists the strength and integrity we have on Capitol Hill and in capitals across America.
When you combine that with the integrity of our policy process (all NFIB positions are derived directly from the desires
of our members), it makes for a powerful combination. NFIB’s lobbyists know where to turn when problems arise, have built friendships that get
their calls answered, and are able to provide their friends with sound information based on the concerns of real people (real people who are,
in turn, also active and vocal).
This last point cannot be understated: policymakers rely on accurate information. If you provide them with
information that is later shown to be wrong and it results in an embarrassing situation for the policymaker, you destroy your own
credibility and the relationship in the process. Integrity isn’t just anything, it’s the only thing.
Question: Could you give any insight into why relationships in politics are so important to achieving the NFIB's
policy goals?
It gets back to that issue of integrity and trust. Those in elected office (and those who work for them) want to serve
their constituents in the best manner possible, and in order to do that, the information on which they base their policy decisions must be as
accurate as possible.
In this day and age, when policy issues are so complex and there are a staggering number of them, it is impossible for
any one person to be an expert in all of them at one time. Likewise, it is impossible for all constituents to be heard on all issues at all
times.
Therefore, for an issue to be heard, groups of people have to coalesce around them – like small business issues. In
order for particular aspects of those issues to be heard, someone actually has to open the door to hear them, which is why those
relationships are important at the outset.
__________
That’s some great insight into political networking. And did you notice the theme that runs throughout the
answers that Mr. Langer gave – integrity and trust. These are relationship words. Not just relationship words, but powerful and
positive relationship words.
Having worked in Washington, D.C. in the late 90’s a phrase that I often heard was that “everyone here is smart – they all
have degrees from prestigious colleges and University. The only thing that matters is your word, once you go back on your word with the other
people here, you’re done.”
And isn’t that true in all of our networking formats – it’s about relationships built on integrity and trust.
Next Month, the continuation of Mr. Langer’s interview and comments from another leading lobbying organization.
Matthew can be reached at
MatthewB@TheNationalNetworker.com.
