Dealing with demanding stakeholders can be overwhelming but an essential aspect of successful stakeholder management. These stakeholders can adversely impact your project. Implementing effective strategies and processes can make all the difference.
A seamless stakeholder management process is essential for the success of the project and needs to be supported and marketed by the organisation. Your stakeholders also have a vested interest in achieving the best project outcome. Throughout the different phases of a project, their opinions and level of support may change requiring constant management. One day they’ll like the proposal or an aspect of it, then the next day they’ll find issues or gaps. At the end, understanding and handling stakeholders expertly is vital to your success.
It can be at times challenging to not take resistance and negativity personally. Focus on collaboration, not conflict. Maintaining professional stakeholder relations is of key significance. Ignoring or dismissing challenging stakeholders isn’t not a sound option.
Instead, adopt effective strategies and use a powerful stakeholder relationship management tool to deal with, manage, and track complicated stakeholders better.
Stakeholder management software like Engagement Hub can encourage collaboration, help bridge gaps in stakeholders’ alignment and promote clarity and transparency in your projects. Additionally, there is added value with the right software such as gaining valuable business insights, identify potential challenges, monitoring and tracking interactions and above all, strengthening your bond with stakeholders.
Here are some effective ways to deal with complicated stakeholders and ensure faster business success:
- Identify and Monitor Them Closely
The initial step is to identify your stakeholders and assess their influence, power, and what may drive them. A stakeholder is anyone who is impacted or benefited by your project and potentially has the ability to influence the outcome. Classify them into three essential categories involving primary, secondary and tertiary stakeholders. Each category has unique influence, interests, objectives, and barriers.
Identifying and assessing stakeholders based on their influence and interest can keep your projects on track and avoid unnecessary distractions. Not all stakeholders are equally important; understanding who has a great impact and can serve as your strongest ally can noticeably reduce stress and streamline your efforts.
- Always Listen to Them Carefully
Never close your communication channels just because you don’t like their opinions or feedback. Rather listen to them carefully and try your best to understand them and identify their motives and goals.
Appreciating their perspective can add significant intel and value. If they’re not liking your decisions or efforts, ask for their feedback, suggestions and try to find common ground.
People like to feel heard and valued. Here are some useful tips to make stakeholders’ feel valued and important:
- Assign project roles that align with their interests and strengths.
- Always treat them with respect, no matter what the situation is.
- Appreciate them on a regular basis especially when they contribute.
- Provide training and coaching to all involved in your project.
- Create opportunities for stakeholders to share their opinions and participate in decision-making.
- Arrange One-on-One Meetings with Them
Arrange individual meetings with difficult stakeholders. Meeting in a private setting can reduce a lot of pressure and make them feel more relaxed, leading to clear and more meaningful conversations.
Use this opportunity to understand their perspectives and viewpoints better. Rather than directly questioning why they don’t like your plan, ask them open-ended questions about their opinions and how they perceive the project’s progress.
Never forget, it’s never too late to improve your stakeholder relationship management. Manage your complicated stakeholders and create an effective stakeholder management plan with Engagement Hub today!
