My last blog post addressed how the unique organizational position of a project manager has required me to develop powers of influence rather than trying to attain more direct authority. In this post, I want to focus on the importance of stakeholders, and share some strategies I have learned to successfully influence them.
A fact of life for a project manager is that every project has stakeholders. These individuals come from various backgrounds, and have diverse interests. Managing the stakeholder relationships has been one of the greatest challenges to my success as a PM, because they have such an immense impact on the project life-cycle. Committed stakeholders are critical to project success. They help me in ways ranging from garnering financial and executive support to defining scope and success metrics. In essence, they make my job as a project manager much easier. On the flip side, resistant stakeholders often distract decision makers, erode project support, delay, or even kill my projects. Few things are as detrimental to a project than a detractor. Here are three tasks that have helped me ensure stakeholders are on my side:
- Identify key stakeholders early
- Understand their perspective
- Determine an influencing strategy
Identify Key Stakeholders Early
When identifying key stakeholders, I ask myself a few questions.
Who stands the most to gain or lose from the successful completion of this project? They have the most skin in the game, and will most likely be the best person to start with. They will be either the easiest or hardest stakeholder to win over depending on their disposition.
Who is the most important decision maker? At the end of the day, there is always one person who has the final say on my projects. In my situation, most projects are pushed through the CTO, so I don’t need to look very hard. In larger organizations this may not be so clear cut. Nevertheless, you need to find that person, because they need to know who you are and that they can trust you with this project.
Who is the most persuasive stakeholder? This person may not have the biggest title in the room, but they just might have the sharpest mind and best connections. They can get into offices that you can’t. This person can be invaluable in winning over the crowd.
If they all happen to be the same person, all the better.
Understand Their Perspective
I believe it is critical to get face time with key stakeholders and identify what they believe are the goals for this project. I find out why they feel the project is necessary (or even unnecessary), and any concerns they have. We may not always see eye to eye on all the issues. That is fine. What I am looking for intelligence that I could use to better craft my arguments and strategies for getting them in my corner. This process also gives them the opportunity to vent and build trust in me at the same time.
I’ve found that getting in front of key stakeholders early and often may be the most important task of a project manager during the planning phase. Few things are more painful than planning a project, showing it to my boss, and having him throw out a week’s worth of work or more. The problem is I didn’t take the time to understand how he perceives my project. This frustration is generally removed when I make sure that we are on the same page from the onset.
Determine An Influencing Strategy
After I have done all the ground work for finding and understanding my stakeholders, I then create an influencing strategy. Here are three tricks that I have found work best:
- Consultation – Stakeholders want to feel invested in the project. One of the best ways to accomplish that is to enlist them as chief consultants during planning and execution. When I get them involved in the process early and value their contribution, they are as invested in the project as me. Failing to bring them to the table early, has often spelled doom for garnering their favor during execution.
- Rational Persuasion – Stakeholders appreciate understanding the why of what I am doing almost as much as the how. While I was busy understanding their perspective, I had a chance to identify their reservations about the project. I use this information to craft logical arguments to alleviate those reservations. If possible, I provide as much factual evidence to bolster my position.
- Exchange – Sometimes no amount of persuasion or consultation will convince them of my position, so I prepare to compromise when necessary. I separate the key elements of my projects from those that are optional. I work with stakeholders to reduce scope or modify the goals. This hopefully brings them to a state when they can go all in on the project.
One quick caution – refrain from strategies that include coalition tactics, or pressure. These can often backfire and could spell disaster for not just your project, but your working relationships and employment with the organization.
In the end, I’ve realized that portfolio project management isn’t just about PPM software, Gantt charts, and work management, it is really about people. As I have focused on winning over people, especially key people like stakeholders, then I have found myself well on the way to a successful project delivery.
I recently attended a PMI chapter meeting that got me thinking about the challenges project managers encounter while attempting to guide their projects to successful completion. The guest speaker, Ken Sardoni, discussed how project managers usually don’t have a lot of authority in the same way a department head has authority. Instead, he pointed out that project managers are perfectly positioned to influence up and down the chain of command. To put this another way, project managers are well equipped to be good gardeners. They can’t command the plants to grow, but with their nurturing influence the garden can thrive. My experience has shown me that good project managers do not equate power with growing authority, but rather focus on developing power through their influence.
‘Tis the season for Bowl Games! As the end of the year approaches, I always get excited for the end of the professional and collegiate football seasons. In these frigid months, the nation gets to see teams divided up into champions, contenders, and pretenders. Through my experience with the sport, I have learned that contenders don’t become champions teams unless they have the following three elements: good coaching, consistent practice, and a good game plan. These three elements prepare a team to face their opponents, and enable them adjust to the changing conditions of the playing field.
