Offering Expertise Gained Through High-Level Experience

Lawmakers want facts relevant to their constituents and districts. Administration officials want to know how your position advances their policy and program priorities.  Contract negotiators want to know how your service can help them achieve their goals.

At Catalyst Partners, our mission is to represent your interests so that you can better understand how to do business with the government, how to keep the government out of your business or how the government affects your business.

These audiences require sound arguments and reasonable justification, and they need to understand the risks – and opportunities – associated with taking your positions.

Persuasive advocacy is key to getting your message out to policy-makers, policy influencers and program managers.  We have built our reputation on being effective advocates for our clients’ interests. Our partners have served as senior congressional staffers and decision makers in the executive branch, including the White House National Security Council Staff and the US Department of Homeland Security. Each of our team members has unique subject matter expertise in strategically important issue areas. Our network of contacts and grasp of the policymaking and program management processes means that our clients receive top-quality advocacy and counsel that adds value to their company.

Issue Tracking

Part of knowing what is coming on the horizon is knowing what changes the government is contemplating.

Having that knowledge helps inform the proper strategies for response and execution. Catalyst Partners knows how to track legislation, anticipate policy changes and influence program-making activities. We alert our clients to new legislation, committee action, and regulatory initiatives, as well as policy and programmatic changes.  We know to keep an eye on interest groups seeking special advantages that might help or hurt our client’s position.

Public Opinion, Policy and Program Analysis

Mark Twain said there are lies, damn lies, and statistics. Just about everybody has an opinion poll to support their position.

Discerning which polls are valid, which are biased and which are simply worthless can give you an edge in assessing public opinion.  To get a real picture of how the public stands on issues that matter to you, it is critical to know how opinion research should be conducted.

Knowing that our clients need a rigorous, honest assessment of the policies and programs under consideration, we offer impartial analysis of public policy proposals. Our mission at Catalyst Partners is to help you understand the difference between fact and fiction.

Coalition Building and Association Management

There’s power in numbers, and an effective coalition can unite disparate organizations to join together in a common cause.

Coalitions are only as effective as their coordination.  A well-run issue coalition maximizes its members’ resources for intelligence gathering, message development, communication, and effective strategy execution.

At Catalyst Partners, our clients gain experienced hands at coalition work.  Our know-how helps leverage the resources of a client and its allies for maximum effect.

We recognize the value of an ad hoc coalition, we know how to draw one together, and we understand how to manage them effectively to move Congress to action on an issue.

Grassroots Advocacy

Nothing turns the tide of decision-making as powerfully as hearing from the people back home.

There is no more powerful voice for a Member of Congress than his or her voters. Grassroots mobilization can make all the difference in the outcome of a tough policy debate or monumental programming initiative in the executive arena as well. When large numbers of constituents advocate a position — elected representatives, policymakers and program managers all take notice.

Whether its employees, members of an organization, or other like-minded groups of people, Catalyst Partners helps our clients organize and activate their grassroots base.  We advise clients on how to best communicate their message to the right policymakers, and produce materials designed to prompt action.

Catalyst knows how to help clients get the most out of their best resources and shift the power back to the people.

Congressional Witness Testimony Preparation

Congressional testimony is not your garden-variety public speaking opportunity.

Compelling witness testimony at public hearings can serve as one of the most influential ways of impacting Congressional decision-making, but it requires much more than an oral presentation. Experts who testify typically provide longer written remarks that become part of the permanent legislative record.  Given the extended shelf life, these written remarks must be carefully crafted to influence not only committee members and staff, but also legislators who don’t serve on that committee, future Congresses, courts, and the public.

Catalyst Partners helps clients prepare written testimony that effectively communicates their perspective on an issue.  We will prepare witnesses to deliver an oral summary of the full testimony in a way that makes the most of the five-minute window of opportunity they have. Based on our knowledge of the issues, and experience in shaping public messaging, we help our clients anticipate questions from committee members and the press and ensure they stay on message.