How can you effectively engage with stakeholders?

One thing I have found to benefit stakeholder engagement is clarifying the problem. We perform problem clarification by identifying the type of problem and assigning a domain. Simple, complicated, complex, and chaotic. Next, we integrate a type of thinking best suited to addressing the problem. We recommend structured and unstructured approaches. This allows for idea generation and selection what an idea that is viable and feasible for the client. Additionally, we will begin project planning and incorporate feedback from all stakeholders prior to project launch. Finally, we have open and fast communication channels so we can address all inputs and feedback from other team members.

All consulting is a combination of the head, heart, hands. Head - Clarifying the problem statement, validating the approach, digging up rare and messy data, driving insights and getting people to agree on your findings. Heart - Overcoming people's fear, inertia, biases, and ennui. Getting people excited and engaged enough to take some action. Hands - Making it easy for the key stakeholders (leaders to the front line) to pick up a metaphorical shovel, and get to work. Need to check all three boxes to make change happen.

In my experience, all is made and or broken because of stakeholder engagement. Do it too little and risk things going wrong, do it at the needed intervals and all will work out. Do not underestimate the impact of a stakeholder or their ability to help structure a way towards success. It's a team effort and everyone has their influence.

Consistent and continuous communication is critical. The only way to ensure that you are addressing the critical issue(s) that you were engaged to tackle and address is by repeatedly checking back with those who are impacted by your efforts to ensure that they understand your efforts and the direction you are heading in. Too many consultants develop their own perception of the issue they have been hired to deal with and subsequently take their work on trajectories that are unrelated to the key problem at hand. This leads to frustration by stakeholders and an unnecessarily extension of the work schedule.

In my work on Future-led Leadership??, one of the tools we use to create healthy ecosystems made up of engaged stakeholders is called "Empathetic Curiosity." The six question inquiry that we use follows here: 1?? Who and what make up my/our working ecosystem? 2?? Why do I/we do what we do (mission / vision)? 3?? Who do I/we really support? 4?? What do they think / need? 5?? When was the last time I/we asked them what they think / need? 6?? What might need to shift to strengthen and bring our ecosystem into balance?

In my experience the key to successful management of stakeholders is to ensure you are well versed with EQ, it's practice and your innate ability to solve personal conflicts. The entire team wants to win, you have to show them that this can be achieved with a proper management of give and receive.

A big challenge is when stakeholders don't prioritize whatever they're stakeholders for either out of a lack of awareness or not being engaged properly to set them up for success.

I agree that stakeholder mapping is a valuable technique for understanding and collaborating with stakeholders. It's essential to conduct this exercise at the start of the project and at regular intervals throughout the project phases because stakeholder interests and influences change over time. This change can be due to various factors like project phases or efforts of the change management team responsible for stakeholder communication. Regularly revisiting stakeholder mapping enables identification of emerging stakeholders and updating engagement strategies to meet their evolving needs and expectations. This approach helps build positive relationships with stakeholders and increase the likelihood of successful project outcomes.

Stakeholder mapping when done properly is invaluable. The problem is that organizations often tend to lack sufficient skills to do good job of it. And you can't fix what you don't know is broken!

Communication planning is critical to ensuring that all deliverables are met on time and to scope. Ensuring that communication can flow up and down the management chain freely cuts out time in meetings. Additionally, formatting meetings has proved to bring efficient timelines and streamlined decision making. Basic format: (1) Email read ahead notes and asking for clarifying data to be brought to the meeting. (2) Open meeting, have all parties present information pertinent to the objective 3-5 minutes max. (3) Decision points are outlined and solved in order. (4) Open for new business or questions. Then repeat the process striving for a 30-45 minute meeting.

Here you need to be careful. It's a mistake to over-communicate to everyone, all the time. It will be like CSPAN (24 hour television of Congress) and nothing will get done. Beginning - Invite all the relevant stakeholders to the kick-off. They should understand that a) this is important b) executives have positively decided to do this c) we will need your help Middle - The core team will do the work. They will update people as needed, but largely, they need enough "air cover" to do the work. This is not a democracy. End - Once again, start the campaigning. Get the "votes" on the analysis, recommendations, and next steps. Get people onboard, one-person or one-group at a time. Create the inertia to persuade an organization to act.