What We Do
Lighthouse Services
- Managing Political Risk:
Directing Advocacy and Lobbying Campaigns - Strategic Communications Campaigns:
Delivering Opinion Research, Digital Communications, Media Relations and Grassroots - Business Development Support:
Driving New Markets through Relationships & Ideas - Organizational Alignment:
An Internal Government Affairs Assessment (GAA)
The services that Lighthouse offers its clients include high-level strategic advice, relationship outreach and management, message development, political intelligence and advocacy, issue management and monitoring, materials development, media relations and business development services. With this comprehensive set of advisory services, we have developed three focused practice areas:
Managing Political Risk:
Directing Advocacy and Lobbying Campaigns
Lighthouse evaluates complex public policy and political risk issues from a strategic perspective to help clients determine the potential impact on their business. We then develop strategies that help manage those risks, as well as shape public policies that can drive business opportunities.
Our wealth of experience in the energy and environmental fields—combined with our ability to work in a bipartisan manner at all levels of government—results in a highly effective approach to managing advocacy campaigns. Additionally, Lighthouse sustains solid ties to national and trade media organizations.
Lighthouse maintains bipartisan relationships throughout the federal government. We also have strong ties at senior levels across the energy industry, and with leading stakeholder interests that include trade associations, advocacy groups, coalitions and think tanks.
Although our primary focus is at the federal level, our relationships often extend to selected state officials and stakeholders, as well. Through this comprehensive network, Lighthouse meets each client’s individual needs, greatly improving prospects for growth and profitability.
We typically help our clients advance their interests in the following forums:
- Congress
- Council on Environmental Quality
- Department of Agriculture
- Department of Energy
- Department of the Interior
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
- National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners
- US Trade Representative
- The White House
- Leading National Environment and Consumer Groups
- Leading National Newspapers (e.g., NYT, WP & WSJ)
SERVING THE FINANCIAL COMMUNITY
Some companies, particularly financial firms, prefer to keep a low profile in Washington. Their interest is less in advocacy and more in access to first-hand, reliable information—critical to making sound investment judgments. They know that public policy initiatives can have a major impact on the economics of investments in large-scale energy assets.
As a result, these firms cannot afford to rely only on seminars, studies and newsletters as their primary sources of information. For these clients, we develop a customized program of engagement with leading policymakers. Our focus on anticipating public policy risks, and on identifying potential opportunities, helps keep these firms ahead of the competition.
Strategic Communications
Lighthouse offers expanded public affairs services to its clients through a strategic alliance with Purple Strategies, one of Washington’s leading, full-service communications firms. Together the two firms integrate the best of traditional public affairs offerings with latest in opinion research services and digital communications tools. We have developed campaigns that have helped clients successfully navigate legislative, regulatory and business-related challenges
Our clients can draw on the expertise of our seasoned team of professionals to execute comprehensive communications campaigns, which we have designed and executed for corporations, trade associations, non-profit organizations, and coalitions. Our alliance’s core competencies include:
- Opinion research
- Stakeholder outreach and engagement
- Grass-tops and grass-roots mobilization
- Media relations
- Digital Communications
- Creative services
- Advertising
Business Development Support:
Driving New Markets through Relationships & Ideas
In addition to our core government and public affairs services, clients seek out Lighthouse for business development support. We help companies identify and pursue prospective commercial opportunities and partnerships, particularly at the most senior levels of the energy and environmental fields.
The Lighthouse team has over 40 years of experience working with the top executives of many leading domestic and international energy companies. Our extensive relationships in the electric/gas and renewable energy industries, as well as with Wall Street firms, can facilitate introductions and exploratory discussions that lead to long-term business relationships.
Our depth of experience and familiarity with leading companies in the sector enables us to help clients shape and target messages into compelling commercial stories. We know how to approach corporate executives, how to capture their attention, how to structure discussions, and how to execute follow-up. The goal, and result, is to position our clients a step-ahead of the competition.
Of course, public policy drivers are also important to business development, especially in the energy industry, and Lighthouse excels at merging them with marketing strategies. Indeed, the most successful companies pursue an integrated approach to business development and policy management. Lighthouse makes a difference with both.
Organizational Alignment:
An Internal Government Affairs Assessment (GAA)
The GAA is a unique management tool developed by Lighthouse to address the alignment and integration of public policy and government affairs with business operations in high performance companies, particularly during times of significant change. We are often asked to perform a GAA for companies undergoing a merger or acquisition.
The GAA accomplishes three goals:
- First, it helps clarify the core issues that a company must address in laying the foundation for a highly effective approach to federal, state, local and, where appropriate, international government affairs.
- Second, it helps a company create its own management structures and strategies for setting policy priorities, managing stakeholder relations and implementing successful advocacy campaigns.
- Third, it establishes a mechanism for managing internal conflict over competing business and policy objectives.
Upon request, Lighthouse can also provide “best practices” information from a select group of peer companies. In addition, we evaluate different business models for public affairs management in the context of the culture or organizational structure relevant to a particular company.
WHAT SUBJECTS DOES THE GAA COVER?
The GAA takes a rigorous look at a client’s approach to government relations and public policy management. Topics include:
- Organizational issues that can lead either to “turf battles” or “team work.”
- Setting of annual policy priorities and key messages that support a company’s business.
- Integration of federal, state and local government affairs.
- Engagement of senior operating executives.
- Resource allocation—balance and relationship between internal and external resources.
- Trade association participation—how to get the most value.
- Political contributions—philosophy, strategy and overall approach.
WHAT DOES THE GAA ACHIEVE?
The GAA identifies a cohesive corporate vision of business and government affairs strategies essential to managing exposure to political and public policy risk. It also strives to guarantee “buy-in” from senior operations executives who must support the external affairs function.
