You're facing skeptical stakeholders in your nonprofit project. How can you earn their trust?

To earn the trust of skeptical stakeholders in your nonprofit project, start by communicating transparently and regularly about the project’s objectives, progress, and challenges. Share clear, data-driven evidence to support your plans and demonstrate the potential impact. Engage stakeholders by actively listening to their concerns and incorporating their feedback into your project strategy. Highlight past successes and testimonials to build credibility. Show accountability by setting realistic expectations and delivering on promises. Foster a collaborative environment where stakeholders feel valued and involved in the decision-making process. Consistent, honest communication and demonstrated results will help build their trust over time.

Before rapport, enshrine an agreement for open communication and collaboration. Without an agreement on open communication someone may not feel empowered to share a concern that can be addressed at the onset.

Facing skeptical stakeholders in your nonprofit project, earn their trust by first understanding their concerns and addressing them openly. Communicate transparently about your project's goals, processes, and expected outcomes. Share data and evidence supporting the project's potential impact. Involve stakeholders in the planning and decision-making processes to foster a sense of ownership and collaboration. Demonstrate your commitment through consistent, reliable actions and follow-through on promises. Regularly update stakeholders on progress and setbacks, showing accountability and responsiveness. Building relationships through empathy, transparency, and consistent performance will help earn their trust.

Vision casting is important but once a project starts to take shape, you have to be a fortress of the facts. Vetted data helps stakeholders understand that there is reasoning behind the project. When we ask our stakeholders to invest in a project, we need to show them why it is a good investment. Sometimes we need seed-funding and in that case, we need to show them what we think will happen. I once asked a stakeholder for a $10,000 seed-investment so I could try to secure funding from the DOD Medical Research Program. The stakeholder agreed but also laughed wishing me luck. Over the past eight years, that $10,000 has resulted in $223M. I met with that stakeholder last year and we had a good laugh on the seed-investment ROI!

Dans toutes décisions, il est important d'impliquer les parties prenantes car c'est ensemble que vous attendrez l'objectif de l'organisation. Reconnectez avec la mission, avec la vision et les valeurs et assurez-vous que vous ayez toutes et tous la même compréhension afin de vous assurez de l'adhésion de tout le monde. Ce sont vos allié.e.s

Il faut aborder les préoccupations des intervenants comme une occasion de voir le projet sous tous les angles, surtout ceux que vous n'aviez pas envisager. Ils vous permettent de voir la forêt et non pas l'arble qui est devant vous. Ce sont vos allié.e.s dans un contexte de saine gouvernance

Concerns need to be acknowledged before being addressed. If you hear of a concern and address it without acknowledging the source or starting point, you missed an opportunity to show your responsiveness directly.

Un tableau de bord des réalisations pourra aider les parties prenantes à apprécier l'avancement du projet et d'y prêter main forte si cela est nécessaire.