Leading Communications Through the Disability Royal Commission
| Case Study

The client

OC Connections is one of Melbourne’s leading disability service providers, supporting people with intellectual disability and complex support needs to live connected, independent and meaningful lives. The organisation delivers person-centred services across accommodation, community participation, employment and supported living while advocating for inclusion, dignity and choice.

The challenge:

OC Connections sought an experienced strategic communications partner to support executive leadership, strengthen organisational reputation and communicate the organisation’s ongoing contribution to disability rights and sector reform.

During the engagement, the disability sector entered one of its most significant periods of public examination through the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability. As an active contributor to the broader conversation on disability rights, the CEO required trusted strategic communications advice to support advocacy, stakeholder engagement and executive communications, while ensuring the organisation remained well prepared to respond to any emerging issues.

Alongside this work, OC Connections sought to strengthen its annual reporting and strategic communications, ensuring key publications reflected its values, community impact and long-term vision.

Our approach:

Over a five-year partnership, Affect Media worked closely with the CEO, executive leadership team and Board to provide strategic communications advice across organisational reputation, crisis preparedness and corporate communications.

The engagement included:

• Strategic communications planning
• Executive communications advice
• Crisis communications planning and preparedness
• Development of communication protocols and response frameworks
• Reputation management
• Media statements and press releases
• Media training for senior leaders and spokespeople
• Stakeholder communications across sensitive organisational issues
• Development of the organisation’s Annual Report over five consecutive years, including stakeholder interviews, writing, editing and publication management

Throughout the Royal Commission, Affect Media provided proactive communications advice designed to prepare the organisation for potential issues, strengthen executive confidence and support informed decision-making in a highly sensitive environment.

The outcome:

Over five years, Affect Media became a trusted strategic communications advisor to the executive leadership team, supporting the organisation through one of the most significant periods of scrutiny experienced by Australia’s disability sector.

The engagement strengthened organisational preparedness, enhanced executive communications capability and delivered a series of flagship annual reports that communicated the organisation’s impact, values and strategic direction.

The long-term partnership reflected the trust placed in Affect Media’s strategic advice and demonstrated the value of experienced communications leadership during periods of complexity and change.

Why it mattered

When organisations operate in highly regulated and publicly scrutinised environments, communication becomes a critical leadership function.

Preparing for difficult conversations before they occur helps organisations respond with confidence, protect trust and support the people they serve.

This project reflects Affect Media’s belief that strategic communications are not simply about managing issues; they are about helping organisations lead with clarity, integrity and accountability when it matters most.