Do you know what the skills of a good GR professional are? What are the characteristics of acting in each sector?

Institutional and Government Relations in Brazil - Emergence and development

From a chronological point of view, the activity of Institutional and Government Relations was recognized in Brazil as an occupation by the Ministry of Labor in 2019, and was included in the Brazilian Classification of Occupations (CBO) list,  which recognizes and describes the characteristics of occupations in the job market in the country and includes non-regulated and informal professions, that is, even if it is recognized on this list, the lobbying activity remains unregulated. 

According to the Ministry of Labor's description for the CBO nº 1423-45 of the Institutional and Government Relations Professional, the activities listed below are part of the routine of the GR professional:

  • Elaborate strategic plans for the commercialization, marketing, and communication areas for agro-industrial, industrial, commercialization, and general services companies; 
  • Act in the political decision-making process, participate in the formulation of public policies, elaborate and establish government relations strategies;
  • Analyze regulatory or normative risks and defend the interests of those represented; 
  • Elaborate internationalization policies, strategic planning for crisis management in the international scenario, projects with international interface;
  • Plan international missions, establish internationalization policies for private and public organizations;
  • In the performance of GR within organizations: They advise the board and sectors of the company, implement activities and coordinate their execution, manage human resources, manage material and financial resources, and promote safety, health, environmental preservation, and quality conditions. 

In the past, the defense of interests in front of decision-makers was often done in the lobbies of hotels and parliaments. Hence the origin of the term lobby, much used by the media to describe people with shady relations with public authorities and who do not represent professionals who act technically and legitimately in the activity. However, the activity of Institutional and Government Relations is not limited only to this part of the process that involves relationship, but rather to its entirety which is highly related to analysis, strategy, risk, and crisis management. 

The little literature regarding lobbying in Brazil shows authors who believe that the practice has existed in the country since the 19th century, and an example of this would be the practices of the Commercial Association of Rio de Janeiro, which began to organize in 1808 and aimed to defend and cooperate for the development of the classes it represented.

In addition to few academic studies, there were not many events to discuss the topic. One of the few held was the I National OAB Conference in 1958, which included the theme "Law Advocacy and Legislative Power: Lobbying".

GR in the job market: Areas of action

In this context, it is extremely important to understand the strategic role of Institutional and Government Relations in the process of representing the interests of civil society, private companies, and associations, whether through lobbying or advocacy actions. This representation is necessary to support and influence the decision-making process of the public sector, from the moment of discussion, going through the articulation, implementation, or review/alteration of public policies. 

The GR professional works in various sectors of the job market, both in the private sector and in the public or third sector. In each area, the activity has a specific character for performance, but which always involves, to some extent, the analysis and monitoring of the political scenario to identify risks and opportunities, and the dialogue with stakeholders.

A political consultancy or law firm, for example, the GR professional can work with the systematization and monitoring of data, creation of risk, impact, or scenario analyses for an organization or even act in loco representing the interests of its clients. This area of action provides products so that the client, directly affected by public sector decisions, has inputs and so that the GovRel team of a company, association, public institution, or the third sector can trace action strategies aligned with the strategy of its organization. 

In a Class Association, on the other hand, the representation of interests occurs on a macro scale and the entity does not represent only one client, but an economic or professional sector organized as a whole. Therefore, in an association, it is necessary to externally represent the joint interests, but also to mediate the possible internal conflicts of interest of its members.

Competencies of the GR Professional - Hard and Soft Skills

In reference to the Institutional and Government Relations professional and the competencies and skills desirable for acting in the job market, studies in human resources management highlight two broad fields of skills for a professional to have and develop, which are called hard and soft skills. 

The hard skills refer to the technical skills of the GR professional, to that which can be learned through training and qualifications. For example, technical courses, undergraduate and graduate degrees, learning foreign languages, and knowledge of computing and programming are some of the domains that a person can acquire.

Regarding the hard skills of the GR professional, knowledge of the English language, as well as an undergraduate degree or specialization focused on politics and public or international relations, economics, or even law, are desirable skills. In addition, the data analysis market, emerging even in GR, demands people who know programming languages for collecting and systematizing information.

In contrast to this, soft skills are not easily measurable, but, nevertheless, they are no less relevant to the professional. Some of these skills are related to the behavioral and personality factors of the individual and may involve: proactivity, leadership, organization, interpersonal communication, analytical capacity, negotiation, and conflict mediation. Thus, a good GR professional must know how to work in a team, be organized to carry out their tasks and meet deadlines, know how to analyze scenarios, and be an effective communicator both in their own workplace and in contact with entities external to the sector of action in which they are inserted. 


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REFERENCES: 

https://www.gupy.io/blog/hard-skills-e-soft-skills  

https://www.educamaisbrasil.com.br/educacao/carreira/hard-skill-e-soft-skill-o-que-sao-e-qual-a-importancia 

https://www12.senado.leg.br/ril/edicoes/42/168/ril_v42_n168_p29.pdf

https://oglobo.globo.com/economia/ministerio-do-trabalho-reconhece-lobby-como-ocupacao-22411977

https://static.poder360.com.br/2019/12/Cartilha_ABRIG-Artiaga-Cunha.pdf

https://www.sebrae.com.br/sites/PortalSebrae/artigos/artigosCoperacao/conheca-os-tipos-de-associacoes-existentes-no-brasil,1dee438af1c92410VgnVCM100000b272010aRCRD 

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This article was written in partnership with Strategos Jr., junior political consultancy at the University of Brasília.

Learn more about Strategos Jr. by clicking here

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Sigalei | Technology for Government Relations

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