Over the past 20 years, the public affairs industry has undergone a sizeable transformation to become a more complex and dynamic industry. In this time, communications, ideas, and politics have all evolved, and in order to keep up with these changes, companies have had to evolve as well. Enter Charlie Dudley, Managing Partner of Prime Strategies, LLC and of the Tallahassee office of Floridian Partners.
A lawyer by trade, Charlie’s role as Managing Partner is to oversee the day-to-day operations of Floridian and Prime. From advising clients on drafting and passing legislation in Tallahassee to guiding their public messaging development, he works diligently to advance the interests of clients at every stop of the process.
According to Charlie, this is what makes FLAP and Prime different. Creating teams that are able to craft regulatory or legislative action, actively lobby for them, and engage the public through the press and other media sets Floridian Partners apart from the rest of the firms in Tallahassee.
“We don’t read talking points,” Charlie pointed out, “we draft talking points.”
This is not always common in government relations. A vast majority of lobbying companies in Tallahassee are hired in order to convey predetermined points to the public and elected officials. Additionally, Floridian Partners has the rare ability to determine which combination of strategies, whether it be regulatory, legislative, legal, or public relations present the best solution to the issues facing their client. The consolidation of these abilities eliminates the need for clients to hire both a lobbying company and a law firm when they want to have a voice at the table.
“Our firm eliminates the need for clients to hire a law firm who can draft legislation and a lobbying firm to advocate for it,” Charlie said. “We offer both of those services in house”.
To this end, clear and constant communications, whether it be with clients, partners, or elected officials, has become the most crucial determinate of success in Charlie’s work at Floridian.
Take Uber, who initially hired Prime Strategies to assist them in the crafting of legislation to amend insurance regulations in Miami-Dade and Broward County. After the successful passing of local legislation, Uber then turned to Charlie and Floridian Partners in Tallahassee to help them draft and pass reforms that would expand access to underserved areas of the state. Through the Tallahassee team’s efforts, Uber succeeded in passing legislation establishing common ridesharing insurance standards across the state, eliminating the need for Uber to meet differing requirements in each Florida county or municipality. In order to ensure the best outcome for the client, the Tallahassee Floridian team worked in coordination with the Miami Floridian and Prime Strategies team, applying successful public relations and lobbying strategies at the state level that were successfully implemented at the local level.
“It’s the integration of traditional lobbying advocacy with public affairs and social media strategies that sets Floridian Partners and Prime Strategies apart from our competitors. Many clients face the financial burden and communications challenges of hiring a “team” of lawyers, lobbyists and PR folks to pursue their public policy objectives. Floridian Partners and Prime Strategies brings all those advocacy skills together under one common team approach and can successfully replicate these synergies for clients in multiple local and state government and community arenas across the nation.”