VRCA Stakeholder Engagement

The engagement project included collecting feedback from a diverse range of industry organizations and thought leaders. The findings will subsequently inform a future design brief, identifying programs and facilities to enhance collaboration, foster a culture of innovation and learning, and accelerate economic recovery in the construction sector, while also identifying key partnerships needed to advance the programming. 

The team was led by Vancouver architect Kate Mathers, principal Adam James, and business development lead Kyla Smyth, and supported by several colleagues including engagement specialist Soo Darcy and research director Oliver Jones.  

The engagement was delivered in three phases: Stakeholder Engagement, National Partnership Strategy, and Knowledge Capture and Dissemination. The VRCA identified stakeholder groups through their 2020 Construction Innovation Centre in Vancouver (CICV) Business Case, which included industry organizations, research and higher education institutions, government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and industry innovators and thought leaders.  

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all engagement was conducted virtually. Programs like Miro virtual white board software, Qualtrics survey software, Mentimeter live polling, and Microsoft Teams enabled us to successfully replicate in-person engagement methods. Furthermore, we reached a wider demographic and engaged people across the country without barriers. Our team delivered engagement streams that were interactive and collaborative to encourage enthusiastic feedback, including a 3-hour virtual Innovation Workshop, which was a great way to get diverse innovators and thought leaders brainstorming in one place.  

Working closely with the VRCA, we implemented a project landing page, external communications strategy, social media campaign, detailed survey, one-on-one stakeholder and potential partner interviews, and a VRCA member dialogue session. We found the stakeholder interviews particularly enlightening because it allowed us to speak one-on-one with innovators about their passions and desires to improve the industry. Throughout the experience, we discovered an inherent need for a Construction Innovation Centre in Vancouver that would serve as a centralized hub of information and connectivity amongst its participants to incite leadership to adopt innovative technologies, products, and practices. We presented our findings in a webinar, which can be found via the link below.