01
Readiness
Establish whether the organisation is ready, and for what.
What you have at the end
An agreed RAP type the organisation can realistically deliver, with the reasoning behind that choice written down.
Methodology
The RAP Delivery Framework
Six phases, from an honest readiness assessment through to evidence captured across the term. This is the shape of how we run engagements, and what you have in hand at the end of each phase.
Why a framework at all
Most Reconciliation Action Plans do not fail at the writing stage. They fail eighteen months later, when an organisation discovers that commitments had no owner, that engagement stopped after the first meeting, or that work genuinely was delivered but nobody recorded it.
Those are not unlucky outcomes — they are predictable, and each one traces back to a specific phase where something was skipped. Working to a defined sequence, with a clear test for whether each phase is actually finished, is what stops a plan drifting into that position.
The outline below is the sequence we work to, and what your organisation has at the end of each phase.
Constants
Four rules that hold across every phase
Every commitment has an owner
A named person, not a team or a function. Actions owned by "the business" are owned by nobody.
Evidence is designed before delivery
The measure and its source are agreed when the commitment is written. Deciding how to prove something after the fact rarely works.
Engagement sets its own pace
Relationship-building cannot be compressed to fit a drafting deadline without damaging the relationship.
Honest beats ambitious
Fewer commitments delivered fully is worth more — to staff, to community, and at renewal — than many announced and abandoned.
Overview
The six phases
| Phase | Purpose |
|---|---|
| 01 · Readiness | Establish whether the organisation is ready, and for what |
| 02 · Foundation | Establish governance and define the sphere of influence |
| 03 · Engagement | Build the relationships the commitments will rest on |
| 04 · Design | Draft commitments that can actually be delivered and evidenced |
| 05 · Endorsement | Secure Reconciliation Australia endorsement |
| 06 · Delivery and evidence | Deliver the commitments and capture proof as you go |
02
Foundation
Establish governance and define the sphere of influence.
What you have at the end
A RAP Working Group that is properly constituted and meeting, and an agreed view of where the organisation can genuinely make a difference.
03
Engagement
Build the relationships the commitments will rest on.
What you have at the end
Continuing relationships with the Traditional Owners and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations relevant to where you operate, and input from the internal teams who will deliver.
04
Design
Draft commitments that can actually be delivered and evidenced.
What you have at the end
A drafted plan in which every commitment has an owner, a timeframe and a way of showing it has been done.
05
Endorsement
Secure Reconciliation Australia endorsement.
What you have at the end
A plan endorsed by Reconciliation Australia and launched internally, with action owners aware their commitments are live.
06
Delivery and evidence
Deliver the commitments and capture proof as you go.
What you have at the end
Commitments delivered and evidenced as the work happens, reporting obligations met, and renewal planning under way before the term ends.
Where we come in
The sequence above is the easy part to describe. The work sits in the judgement calls inside each phase — deciding honestly which RAP type is achievable, knowing when a phase is genuinely finished rather than just out of time, facilitating community engagement respectfully, and challenging commitments that sound good but cannot be delivered.
That is what we bring to an engagement, alongside the detailed working method behind each phase — the activities, the artefacts, and the specific checks that tell you a phase can be closed.
Want this run for you?
A free discovery call covers Phase 1 in outline — which RAP type is realistic for your organisation, and what delivering it would involve.