Education and communication on both sides of the partnership need to be improved-possibly through a four-pronged approach including:
• Educating the public through public-sector executives and committed, lifetime bureaucrats
• Educating our neighbors, communities and states
• Lobbying for appropriate legislation
• Policing and educating ourselves to use the terminology and concepts consistently
There seem to be misunderstandings of public-private partnerships that a first-rate, high-profile marketing effort can eradicate. The public sector sometimes thinks PPPs are a way for the private sector to steal jobs while raking in obscene profits. On the other hand, the private sector believes their PPP will always cost less than if the public sector performed the same work.
Professional services marketers are uniquely qualified to take on this task and time is of the essence! Like a PPP proposal, educating the nation about PPPs is an enormous undertaking with uncertain rewards, but definitely a labor of love and an opportunity to let our creativity shine. Basic familiarity with financial and legal structures can only enhance our abilities to effectively communicate and put together a PPP.