Winning the Influence Game

What Every Business Leader
Should Know about Government

Michael Watkins, Mickey Edwards, and Usha Thakrar

Chapter 9: The Internet: Leveling the Playing Field

The Internet as a Tool for Monitoring
Information is power, and the Internet provides a great deal of information at very low cost. Not surprisingly, influence professionals have rushed to embrace the Web as a tool for staying in touch with what is going on in government.


Monitoring Government Processes
Widespread use of the Web to monitor federal and state government activity reflects, at least in part, the availability of very good Web-based services. GalleryWatch (www.GalleryWatch.com), for example, offers a leading-edge subscription service for tracking bills, getting information on committee schedules, and doing research on legislation. The company gets access to bills soon after they are filed with legislative clerks, and makes copies available immediately to its clients. Subscribers can also request notifications about significant events they need to know about. GalleryWatch employees sit in on every committee hearing and mark-up session. They send information on amendments and voting tallies (including votes by individual legislators) to a central database. Notification software then delivers information immediately to clients in whatever form they have requested e-mail, mobile phone, fax, and so on.

Ordering Information:

John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
Copyright © 2001 by John Wiley and Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Watkins, Michael, 1956–
Winning the influence game : effective business strategies for managing
government relations / Michael Watkins, Mickey Edwards, Usha Thakrar.
p.    cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-471-38361-9 (cloth : alk. paper)

1. Industrial policy—United States.   2. Business and politics—United States

I. Edwards, Mickey, 1937–   II. Thakrar, Usha, 1966– III. Title
HD3616.U47W34 2001
658.4'012—dc21
2001017634