First NAC Communication Working Group assesses results of Alpine survey

As part of Snow Australia’s National Alpine Plan, the National Alpine Committee (NAC) held its first Communication Working Group meeting this week.

The session outlined the purpose of the working group and reviewed the findings from the Alpine Communication Survey, the consultation process conducted over the last six weeks to review NAC’s communication channels and develop a National Communication Strategy. The survey highlighted how transparency and segmentation of communication are key areas of interest for the alpine community, as members require efficient ways to inform the different levels of the pathway, from Interschools through to U10, U12, U14, U16, FIS and Masters, particularly around criteria, events and meeting information.

A focus on communication channels was also another main theme identified by the survey, alongside relevance of content and information on the Athlete Pathway and Development, from entry to FIS level. Alice Chilcott, NAC member and Chair of the Communication Working Group, said that the group’s collaboration is critical as NAC tries to improve the relevance of the information provided and streamline the number of communication channels used by stakeholders within the community. 

“Communication and collaboration go hand in hand. I am very excited to have this newly formed working group together for the first time. It was clear after the first meeting that we all share common goals in delivering clear and engaging messages to the alpine community. We will work towards developing clear and consistent communication paths that will increase the reach of the National Alpine Plan initiatives.

“On behalf of the NAC, I would like to thank those in the community who took the time to participate in the survey. The feedback has been extremely helpful to give direction to the committee, better understand what the gaps and opportunities are and how to address them moving forward,” Chilcott said.

Chaired by Chilcott, the NAC Communication Working Group also includes Michael Dickson (NAC member), Nyree Fiddes (Falls Creek Race Club), Meagan Cutcliff (NSW/QLD/ACT Alpine Committee Member / Alpine Parent), Sue Anthony (Program Administrator – Mt Buller Race Club) and Snow Australia National Alpine and Pathway Coordinator, Rebecca Clark. 

Following up on the results of the survey, the group will now work on finalising a Communication Strategy and improve the foundations of NAC’s communication channels and information for 2021. For the future, the NAC also aims to send an annual survey and continue to measure the progress and results of Alpine communication.