The Secret to Executive Engagement: Don't Try to Get Executive Engagement

Of the multitude of presentations and articles you are likely to find on the topic of executive engagement, many helpful tips and tricks can be found. Unfortunately, an equal number also contain unhelpful suggestions or truly bad advice. What is executive engagement and how do you know when you’ve achieved it? More importantly, are you hurting your chances by even trying?

In case you haven’t heard, I’m taking a new approach in my advocacy for Adaptive Business Continuity. For that reason, I’m steering clear of any BIA and Risk Assessment discussions for a while. For today, I’ve picked a topic that is less contentious but about which there has still been quite a bit written and presented: executive engagement. This is a great place to start demonstrating Adaptive’s benefits because there are two principles that are applicable here. In keeping with my new kinder and gentler approach, I will not focus on the language found in the Adaptive Business Continuity Manifesto that may be interpreted as controversial or combative. Instead, let’s just focus on the Principles as they are stated. Let’s start with….

Engage at Many Levels within the Organization

Well, this is cause for celebration! This statement acknowledges the value of executive involvement but does not overemphasize its importance. Adaptive puts front line employees, supervisors, middle management and senior leadership all on the same level in terms of the need for their engagement in the business continuity program. This should be a great relief because Adaptive is telling us not to fret over one particular group of individuals. And, let’s face it, executive management can be an awfully intimidating group. Why should we put undue burden on ourselves and risk failure before we’ve even started? Begin at the level with which you feel most comfortable or where you believe you can provide the most benefit. When it comes time to report on your progress, the leadership team will still be there and you’ll be able to report on your accomplishments rather than mere intentions.

We shouldn’t break out the champagne just yet, though. We don’t have to worry nearly as much about getting leadership buy-in but there are the other parts of the hierarchy we must now seriously consider. Adaptive is not a shortcut by any means. If anything, Adaptive requires more of the practitioner. By not singling out any specific group to focus on, Adaptive is saying that they are all equally important. Good programs are not based on relationships established at only one level of management. Solid programs demonstrate their value to everyone, from the front-line employee to the CFO.

But there is another, very important but also very subtle, point to be derived from this statement. It is found in the subject of the sentence. Can you spot it? This statement is a command directed at you, the reader, the listener, the practitioner. Too often, instruction around executive engagement frames it as something to be obtained. But the onus is really on the business continuity professional. If you want engagement then you must be the one to engage.

And, if you seek involvement from the c-suite, then that brings us to…

Obtain Incremental Direction from Leadership

This changes things substantially. Adaptive frees BC professionals from the task of seeking engagement for engagement’s sake. Instead, Adaptive provides a reason for going to leadership: for guidance. This puts business continuity and executive leadership in the proper context. Practitioners should not be thinking of preparedness and recoverability as products or capabilities to be sold. Instead, they should be conversation starters, jumping-off points for deeper discussions about where to apply finite resources and what actions or investment can provide the greatest benefit.

Instead of entering our senior level discussions with the purpose of delivering a plan or a road-map for approval, we can go to with an open mind (and equally open agenda). By framing the discussion as obtaining direction, we are not in the position of having to acquire some sort of nebulous “buy-in” or “engagement”. This brings purpose to the discussion. This approach cedes control to those that should have it and takes a significant burden off the BC Professional. It also provides an opportunity for the engaged professional to understand the organization’s priorities and how best to meet them.

At the end of the day, executive engagement is not something one should pursue as an end goal. Instead, engagement should be a natural outcome of the work we do. Executing based on leadership’s priorities and reporting on those accomplishments will help to establish business continuity as a contributor to the organization’s mission and objectives. This will go much further in establishing engagement than attempting to sell business continuity’s value before any work is performed.