AUSTRALIAN ARMY

Army Objective Force – Strategic Communication

THE CHALLENGE

Our challenge was to support the Australian Army in communicating the most significant transformation for Army since WWII, known as the Army Objective Force (AOF).

Army is change fatigued, which presented a significant challenge to engage, sustain and raise faith that the AOF was not an empty, unfounded and out-of-touch initiative that was not for the soldier.

AOF is responsible for communicating key strategic documents to Army’s people and the wider defence community. With the content heavily grounded in military language, RD was challenged to translate key documents into sharper, accessible, and more engaging messages for audiences.

THE SOLUTION

To gain cut-through and, most importantly, trust, the RD Consulting team presented the clients with never-before used Army animation products. Within a tight timeframe of less than three months, we selected spokespeople who are known and trusted to be the face of the 11 initiatives that comprise the AOF. The spokespeople ranged from LTCOL to the Deputy Chief of the Army. We engaged these high-ranking leaders and created products that were posted across Army public facing channels and displayed at the Chief of Army Symposium.

The one-of-a-kind animation videos included conflict sequences, demonstrating the expected impact of changes and communicating the broad spectrum of Army’s changes over the next decade – from capability acquisition to workforce generation.

Army used these videos to dispel misinformation, generate buy-in from various areas of Defence and industry, and better inform Army’s people on workforce changes. The approach was a first-of-its-kind for Army and was so successful that the client requested a series of videos exploring each strategic document’s concepts, a project slated for a further three years.

Proactively identifying a gap in high-level engagement and communications, RD also developed a foundational document called an ‘Aide to Commanders’. This was the first foundational messaging about the AOF and serves as a source of truth. It is a living document, accessible to Ministers and high-ranking personnel, and is consistently updated to reflect the evolving nature of decision-making processes in the strategic environment.

THE RESULTS

Our ability to provide effects-based support to the AOF team has been critical in developing and shaping the communications narrative on behalf of the Chief of Army.

A letter from the client signifies the success of RD’s work, particularly Senior Consultant Amanda Smith. Amanda was commended for the impact of her innovation:

“Ms Smith is a highly competent individual who has made a significant contribution to developing the strategic communications plan and supporting products that underpin the AOF.”