Practice areas

We offer a full suite of services and proprietary tools that can be tailored to diverse projects and communities, allowing us to create the best possible process—every time.

Our attention to context and our commitment to every community we work with and how to best engage them supports innovative, creative solutions for each project’s needs.

We recognize when to adjust course to better address changing circumstances. Often, this leads to ideas and solutions no one imagined at the start, driving better outcomes and deeper insights.

Virtual communications are increasingly essential to the success of every project, and so is reaching those affected by limited access to technology and resources.

We’re coming up with solutions to help clients navigate evolving tools and culture, leading the change we want to see. 

There is no “one-size-fits-all” to our approach. We collaborate with partners to craft better processes. If the tools we need don’t exist, we make them. Our approach produces genuine, personal and effective engagement.

Custom public engagement, centered on communities

  • Customized engagement strategies and effective decision-making processes that help your project succeed.

    We help agencies strategize effective engagement, anticipate and navigate challenges, work together, and uphold commitments to the public.

  • A solid foundation for your project supported by early conversations, research and thematic reports directly related to decision-making.

    This might include interviews, small group discussions in multiple languages, online surveys or informal intercept surveys. It always includes insightful and useful summaries.

  • Expert, third-party facilitators craft and lead your meetings so you can focus on the discussion.

    We facilitate advisory committees, policy groups, sounding boards, and other groups to allow various viewpoints to engage in dialogue, discuss trade-offs, and seek common ground on complex public issues. We facilitate and co-facilitate multilingual meetings and public workshops. We design agendas for effective meetings for our clients and the participants. We offer graphic recording and meeting documentation.

  • Piquing interest and inspiring involvement through thoughtful communications programs.

    Our project staff specialize in developing comprehensive communication plans, including key messages, talking points, templates, visual resources and implementation strategies—all rooted in engagement best practices.

  • Dynamic, engaging virtual venues that allow community members to participate from anywhere.

    This includes custom online open houses, social media campaigns, online surveys, e-newsletters, websites, interactive storytelling, map-based feedback tools, among many others and those yet to be imagined. See some of JLA’s online open houses at openhouse.jla.us.com.

  • The power of video to communicate about challenging and complex topics.

    JLA has been a pioneer in the use of video as a public involvement tool. In-house services include strategy, scripting, filming, interviews, animation, post-production, captioning, and translation. See some of JLA’s videos at vimeo.com/jlainvolve.

  • Bringing people together with tailored gatherings that inspire and inform.

    We help you hold public events, workshops, ribbon-cuttings, groundbreakings, living room meet-ups, community celebrations, and imagine new formats to gather people together. JLA's events range from a few neighbors to hundreds of people, carefully planned to encourage meaningful face-to-face conversations.

  • An essential part of JLA’s work is getting out and talking to community members where they are.

    Considerately planned interpersonal engagement is always essential. We conduct neighbor and business canvassing, tabling events, area tours, community presentations, and many types of individual engagement. We often represent agencies as a project's point of contact, reinforcing your agency’s commitment to public engagement with an understanding of your goals, values and standards.

  • Engaging people through clear, compelling print and digital communications.

    Good design is essential to effective communication. Our work incorporates copywriting, graphic design, print production, illustration, infographics, map creation and all elements needed to explain your project to the public.