Strategic Plan

The Strategic Plan provides insights into ACCAN’s mission, values and strategic goals. The plan will direct the organisation’s work for the next three (3) years and sets out how ACCAN will achieve its vision of trusted, accessible, inclusive, affordable and available communications and digital services for all Australians.

Download:  pdfACCAN Strategic Plan 2025-2027252.61 KB

Download:  docxACCAN Strategic Plan 2025-202784.17 KB

ACCAN Strategic Plan Purpose

ACCAN is the peak national consumer advocacy organisation for communications.

Vision

Trusted, accessible, inclusive, affordable and available communications and digital services for all Australians.

Mission

To advocate for, represent, support and inform consumers to deliver better outcomes.

Values

  • Courageous
  • Transparent
  • Inclusive
  • Collaborative
  • Valuing diversity

Strategic Goals

ACCAN is committed to achieving the following four key strategic goals:

  • National leadership in consumer communications advocacy and awareness
  • National leadership in policy and research
  • Collaboration and coalition building
  • Organisational capacity and resilience

Preamble – the changing communications and digital services environment

ACCAN has an opportunity over the coming three years to consolidate on its record of achievement, and to cement its place as a trusted, influential national leader in consumer communications issues (encompassing communications and digital services herein referred to as communications) and evidence-based solutions. 

There are significant challenges in the communications area that ACCAN will contend with including:

  • Continuing rapid growth in the digital economy
  • Emerging technologies raising new opportunities and new issues for consumers, and for ACCAN in representing consumers
  • The rapid rise of AI requiring regulation and policy change, including for consumer protection
  • Increasing international and transnational issues raising more complex policy questions
  • Communications being recognised as an essential service, requiring clarity about the Government’s universal service commitments and how they will be achieved
  • Demographic changes in the digital consumer population, including an ageing population and new generation digital natives
  • Competing policy voices in the digital space
  • Need for increased focus on consumer education and consumer issues by government agencies and regulators

The ACCAN Strategic Plan has four key strategic goals, eleven objectives and twenty-four key success measures.  A detailed workplan with performance indicators for each area of ACCAN operations relevant to the agreed strategic goals, objectives and key success measures will be developed to support the accountability process involved in implementing the ACCAN Strategic Plan.

1. National leadership in consumer communications advocacy and awareness

  1. ACCAN is recognised as a trusted, influential national leader in consumer communications issues and evidence-based solutions
  2. ACCAN builds and sustains a recognised and respected brand both in the communications sector and across the broader Australian community
  3. ACCAN is acknowledged as a known and influential leader in effectively communicating consumer perspectives on communications issues to stakeholders and the broader community

2. National leadership in policy and research

  1. ACCAN undertakes evidence-based policy and research work in the key strategic
    areas of:
    1. Digital inclusion – reflecting key consumer issues in affordability, accessibility and resilience for vulnerable and identified target groups
    2. Consumer protection – reflecting key consumer issues such as the robustness of industry codes, privacy and data security, competition in digital platforms etc
    3. Communications – includes reliable, resilient and robust infrastructure through pricing of the NBN, legacy communications and expanding coverage, capacity and reliability of infrastructure

3. Collaboration and Coalition building

  1. ACCAN develops and fosters strategic partnerships, playing a key role in co-ordinating and engaging with politicians, policy makers, funders and stakeholders with an interest in all forms of communications
  2. ACCAN has a diverse, nationally representative consumer network which provides expertise to inform ACCAN’s positions and advocacy
  3. Other organisations look to partner with ACCAN on issues relating to communications and digital technology

4.  Organisational capacity and resilience

  1. ACCAN has sufficient funding to meet the reasonable expectations of members and government. (This will require ACCAN’s funding contract to be renewed and expanded to reflect the changing nature of communications and provide an avenue for consumer perspectives to inform the reform agenda. An example of this is the new funding for ACCAN in the costing the NBN)
  2. ACCAN’s sustainability is underpinned by a successful record in producing effective and strategic advice to the federal government with efficient deliverables related to its key funding contract
  3. ACCAN has developed new ways of innovating and funding its work through diversified funding streams. (For example, project-based collaborations involving policy and research)
  4. ACCAN’s core organisational resilience goals include meeting appropriate standards in:
    1. Governance – reflecting best practice approaches to Board/CEO responsibilities, risk management and compliance e.g. Board governance training and regular performance evaluation
    2. Staffing and skills – support a strong and capable team with a diversity of views, experience and skills, and aligned with vision and mission

Download:  pdfACCAN Strategic Plan 2025-2027252.61 KB

Download:  docxACCAN Strategic Plan 2025-202784.17 KB