Our Mission & Vision 🎯
At CommunitiesThrive®, we believe every community deserves the chance to truly thrive. Our vision is to empower local governments, organisations, and citizens across Australia and around the globe with innovative, inclusive, and evidence-driven solutions that create lasting positive impact.
We operate at the intersection of community engagement, AI-powered insights, ethical governance, and collaborative action. We help you co-design brighter futures—one insight, one engagement, one innovation at a time.
Who We Are: A Team of Pioneers 📖
Based in Sydney (proudly carbon-neutral!), CommunitiesThrive® serves communities across Australia 🇦🇺, New Zealand 🇳🇿, Canada 🇨🇦, and the United Kingdom 🇬🇧. We’re an award-winning GovTech company and consultancy known for authenticity, innovation, and trusted results.
Our story is grounded in decades of frontline leadership in public-sector strategy, digital transformation, and pioneering market research.
Market Facts Partnership: Trusted Data, Proven Legacy 📊
Much of our exceptional credibility stems from our proudly held partnership with Market Facts Pty Ltd, one of Australia’s most reputable and longest-standing research agencies (established 1975). Under the distinguished leadership of Managing Director Lesley Gibbs, Market Facts provides CommunitiesThrive® with unparalleled research rigour and decades of community research excellence.
Lesley Gibbs’ impressive 30+ year leadership includes landmark studies such as the Queensland-wide LGAQ Customer Satisfaction Study, serving more than 40 councils. Together, CommunitiesThrive® and Market Facts deliver actionable insights—powered by both human expertise and sophisticated AI-driven platforms.
What Sets Us Apart 🌟
- World-Class Expertise 🏅: Over three decades supporting governments, non-profits, researchers, and education providers. Lesley Gibbs (Market Facts) is nationally renowned for rigorous community satisfaction studies and robust statistical integrity.
- Innovation Excellence 💡: Proud creators of trusted AI-powered platforms—PlacePulse.AI for continuous service-level engagement and analytics, and AgileFlow.AI for automated governance, reporting, and compliance tasks.
- True Inclusion ✊: Multichannel engagement (web, phone, SMS, workshops, kiosks, and more) ensures all community voices—particularly “seldom heard” groups—are accurately represented.
- Ethical & Sustainable 🌿: 100% carbon-neutral by commitment, enhanced with best-in-class privacy, accessibility, and inclusion practices.
- Robust Evidence 📌: Comprehensive sample design, qualitative insights, and rigorous analytics delivered as clear and actionable recommendations.
Meet the Core Leadership Team 👋
Dr Chris Budhan
Founder & Managing Director
- Dual Australian–Canadian citizen with global public-sector expertise 🌏
- Former Director of Engagement at YourSay, City of Melbourne
- Degrees from McGill University, NYU, and University of Texas (Austin)
- Over 15 years in digital engagement, local government, and AI product development
- Multi-award-winner: IAP2 (twice), United Nations LivCom, Heart Foundation, Parks & Leisure Australia 🏆
- Creator of PlacePulse.AI and AgileFlow.AI platforms
Lesley Gibbs
Managing Director – Market Facts Pty Ltd
- Over 30 years’ leadership experience in trusted Australian research agencies (Roy Morgan, ANOP, McNair Anderson before Market Facts)
- Owner & MD of Market Facts since 1999
- Proven leadership in robust stakeholder and large-scale community satisfaction studies across Australia 📈
Extended Team & Partners ✨
- Platform architects and analysts
- Engagement specialists and accessibility advisors
- Experienced compliance experts and award-winning researchers across Australia, UK, and Canada 🇦🇺🇬🇧🇨🇦
Recognition, Impact & Trusted Partnerships 🥇
- Multi-award-winning recognition (IAP2 Core Values awards awarded twice, United Nations LivCom, Heart Foundation, Parks & Leisure Australia, and more)
- Trusted by over 100 councils and major organisations within Australia and internationally
- Featured projects include:
- Bega Valley Shire Council (Community Water Engagement) 🌊
- Gladstone Regional Council (Annual Community Survey) 📋
- Federation Council (Strategic Community Planning) 📍
- City of Kwinana (Multicultural Community Engagement) 🌈
💬 Recent Project Testimonial:
“Their cutting-edge platform and sharp AI insights transformed our ability to understand complex stakeholder data. Chris and his team’s dedication was second to none!”
— Samantha Barnes, Bega Valley Shire Council
Our Values: What We Stand For ⚖️
- Inclusion 🙌: Every community voice matters—especially those that have traditionally gone unheard.
- Evidence 📚: Clear data, actionable insights, and defensible decisions.
- Collaboration 🤝: Genuine partnerships rooted in mutual trust and shared outcomes.
- Sustainability 🌱: Ethical integrity, carbon-neutral operations, and future-focused strategies.
Why Choose CommunitiesThrive® 📌
- Powerful AI-driven platforms paired with human-led consulting
- Global expertise delivered with local understanding
- Proven, transparent results improving communities
- Trusted expertise in compliance, ethics, and inclusion
- Clear focus on people-first outcomes
Looking Ahead: An Ambitious International Vision 🚀
Boundaries don’t limit our ambition. Combining Australia’s unique innovation, global best practices, and unmatched local partnerships, we’re expanding our impact to the UK and beyond. Trusted by forward-thinking councils, charities, schools, and ethical businesses, we build smarter, fairer, more prosperous communities—worldwide.
Join Our Journey 🎉
If your organisation shares our passion for empowering communities through robust evidence, deep innovation, inclusion, and meaningful collaboration—we’d love to hear from you.
📞 Call or text: (+61) 0416 001 982
📧 Email: chris@communitiesthrive.com.au
CommunitiesThrive®—AI-driven community engagement, insightful decision-making, and inclusive innovation for a shared, thriving future. 🌏👥✨