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Stop Being Difficult! How to Deal with Challenging Stakeholders

Betsy Stockdale

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2

Sponsors

Diamond

In Kind

Gold

Platinum

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Meet Blue

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Difficult stakeholders can impact projects in many ways

Negative Outcomes

Value Miss

Career Blocks

Unhappy Team

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Agenda

Types of difficult stakeholders

Align stakeholders

Tactics for dealing with difficult

stakeholders

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mmrrrr

mmmr

Passive Aggressive Stakeholders

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Disinterested Stakeholders

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Aggressive Stakeholders

!

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Indecisive Stakeholders

?

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Stakeholders who take on all forms of difficult

?

! mmmr

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Share stories about

difficult stakeholders

Therapy Time

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Agenda

Types of difficult stakeholders

Align stakeholders

Tactics for dealing with difficult

stakeholders

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Stakeholders often base their arguments on emotions

Check egos

Have rational

conversations

Find common

ground

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Gaining consensus

! ! ! !

Positions are “what” Interests are “why”

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! Gaining consensus

Understand the interests …behind the positions

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Use business objectives to get agreement

“Why” are stakeholders doing the project?

What problem they are trying to solve?

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BUSINESS

PROBLEM

BUSINESS

OBJECTIVE

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Use business objectives to form a team

What is their common goal?

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Business objectives guide conversations and scope

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People don’t like to break commitments

Get verbal commitments

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Engage everyone in the

discussion

Everyone speaks

Team identifies

ideas

Everyone feels

heard

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Brainstorm ideas using likes, concerns, and suggestions

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Agenda

Types of difficult stakeholders

Align stakeholders

Tactics for dealing with difficult

stakeholders

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Passive Aggressive Stakeholders

Discuss privately

Prioritize their

concerns

Ask them to help

Build your own

credibility

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Disinterested Stakeholders

Tie to personal goals

Value their time

Emphasize project’s

importance

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Stay calm, pause

Apologize

Notice body language

Restate the value to

the stakeholder

Know when to walk

away

Be confident

Aggressive stakeholders

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Indecisive Stakeholders

Help improve their

confidence

Provide options to

choose from

Emphasize project’s

importance

Stress the team can

help

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Stakeholders who fall under different types depending on

communication mechanism

Identify the styles

Learn what forms of

communication work

When in doubt, fall

back on techniques for

each personality type

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Agenda

Types of difficult stakeholders

Stakeholder Alignment

Tactics for dealing with difficult

stakeholders

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Suggested reading

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Betsy Stockdale Seilevel, Inc.

betsy.stockdale@seilevel.com

S www.seilevel.com

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