When a senior manager of the company you work for pulls you aside to explicitly emphasize how important it is to build a relationship with a specific client, you know to take it seriously.
I had just started on a new project to implement Dynamics 365 for an organization. The Product Owner had never implemented Dynamics and apparently, she was more than a little nervous. “You will need to guide her through this journey, Dani”.
Point taken, I spent the first few days connecting and exchanging with the client Product Owner. We discussed requirements, methodology, approach, etc. It was a very collaborative way of working and I was happy to see the relationship and trust we established. I was confident about the start of this project with the team.
When planning the first workshop, the Product Owner invited her Business Analyst and a few SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) to attend. I was surprised to see a Business Analyst being invited as my Product Owner never mentioned anything about him. However, as I already established a good working relationship with the Product Owner, I figured she would introduce me to the team and lead the conversation during the workshop.
I should have known better than to rely on an assumption 😉.
The morning of the workshop, I get a brief text message from my Product Owner apologizing that she can’t make the workshop and that her Business Analyst will lead the session.
I had still not met the Business Analyst and was getting a bit nervous about what to expect.
The session turned out to be a complete nightmare from start to finish. The Business Analyst was incredibly detailed and questioned every single item we discussed while I had planned for a more high-level workshop to match the knowledge level of the Product Owner. After 2 exhausting hours we finally decided to end the workshop and agreed to plan an additional workshop so that I could prepare more in depth to answer his questions.
2 days after that workshop, and to my big surprise, I got an escalation call from a senior stakeholder at my company. Apparently, the client had provided a very negative feedback about the workshop. They complained I had been unprepared and indecisive on key questions.
I was quite taken back about what I was hearing. Before I started, I had been very confident about this project. I would never have guessed that I would find myself in an escalation after the very first workshop. I spent a few days digesting this information and replaying that workshop in my head. I did some research and learned that the Business Analyst had been in the company for a long time and was very respected by my client’s senior stakeholders. I’d had some spirited discussions with him during that workshop, which probably didn’t do me any favors.
Following that escalation, I took the time to personally connect with the Business Analyst and we discussed some of the disagreements we had during the workshop. As I got to know him, it turned out that he was very competent and a great Business Analyst for the project. I’m certain we could have avoided this false start if I would have spent time to connect with him before that workshop and would have prepared the content to his level of professionalism.
Although it was not a pleasant experience, it all worked out and I’ve taken away a very important lessons to always map all my project stakeholders at the very start of a project as well as to verify the audience that attends my workshops. I make sure that I know the name, role and interests of each stakeholder. It has not only helped me not to make another blunder but has become an incredibly valuable tool for me in projects.
WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW YOUR STAKEHOLDERS
There are several reasons why it is important to know your stakeholders.
- Firstly, knowing your stakeholders will help you understand their requirements better. Get to know what is important to them as well as what their current frustrations are. It will help you find a better solution and will also make sure you can explain it to them in their language. As in the above example, getting to know your stakeholders before important workshops will help you tailor your preparation as well.
- Equally as important is that if you take some time to get to know your stakeholders on a project, they will feel heard (because they are 😊) and as such you will build up trust and goodwill. In any project there are times when things do not go according to plan or you will have to pivot somewhat. It is at those moments when the effort you’ve put into building relationships with your stakeholders will buy you some flexibility and will also make sure you can come up with a solution that is still acceptable to them. What’s more, the trust and goodwill built up is obviously very important for any future projects you might want to undertake in the same organization.
- Although not all stakeholders are equally as important to your project you need to make sure everyone feels heard enough so there will not be a ‘rotten apple’ in the team (a person that can discredit you or demotivate the team because they don’t trust or like you). However, following the 80/20 rule you obviously need to focus most of your time and energy on the stakeholders that will matter the most to the success of your project
Below are some tools and strategies I use for stakeholder management.
STEP 1: IDENTIFY YOUR STAKEHOLDERS
Probably not a shocker, but the first step is to find out who your stakeholders are. Creating a stakeholder map is very useful here to make sure you do not overlook anyone that should be included. If you are a consultant on the project through an outside organization, get your salesperson involved to help you with this.
Added advantage is that the simple fact of creating a stakeholder map will help you to remember your stakeholders and connect with them better.
A regular Dynamics 365 project could have the following stakeholders involved:
As you can see, you do not only include the company’s stakeholders but any outside stakeholders as well. It is important you learn both their role in the organization and their role in the project. Those might not be the same which could be confusing for the project and for them as well. (For example I once had a Project Manager within the organization fulfill the role of SME on the project and had to manage her quite closely since she kept on falling into the PM role and contradicting the appointed PM for the project).
To verify your list is complete you can:
- Go through the list with the Project Sponsor and Product Owner
- Double check with an organizational chart to ensure you haven’t left anyone important out.
Once you have all the players listed you are ready for the next step.
STEP 2: CREATE A STAKEHOLDER MAP
When you have identified who your stakeholders are, you can use the following template to map them out on Power and Interest and whether they are Indirectly related, Directly related or Core project team.
Mapping this out can give you a couple of insights:
- Stakeholders that are in your core team but not interested, might present a problem if your project success depends on them. In the example above, a disinterested Lead Architect would raise a red flag for me. That person would be a focus to build a relationship with that can make him more interested in the project or at least willing to dedicate his time.
- High Power and Interested stakeholders need to be managed closely. Those that are in your core team will usually be well-informed, but it is important not to lose sight of those that are in the direct and indirect rings who can have a big positive or negative impact on the success of your project within the organization. You will need to learn what their requirements are and what they expect from you with regards to communication.
- High power people that are not interested and not in the core team will mostly just need to be kept in the loop of the most important communications.
- Low power people that are interested do need to be kept informed so as not to create any ‘rotten apples’. In this example mostly all low power people are in the core project team so will be informed just by means of the day-to-day.
- Low power people that are not interested and not in your core team you do not need to worry about.
STEP 3: CONDUCT INTERVIEWS WITH YOUR INTERESTED STAKEHOLDERS
For those stakeholders that are no interested, just find out what communication they need to feel sufficiently informed. The interested stakeholders, especially those with high power will need a bit more attention. A good practice would be to conduct short interviews with them.
Typical questions to ask:
- What does success look like for this project
- Personal benefits you would like to get from this project (Experience, learning new skills, promotion, personal satisfaction?)
- Frustrations and Problems that this project will solve for you (or your users) when we Go Live?
- What are your top 3 Requirements / Features that this project will solve?
- Current challenges related to this project / on this project?
- Communication preferences (Method and Frequency)
- What kind of information would you like to get from me?
You can find a sample Survey I use on D365 Customer voice via the link below:
https://ncv.microsoft.com/CcHAJhlBsX
STEP 4: ADAPT YOUR COMMUNICATION PLAN TO THE NEEDS OF YOUR STAKEHOLDERS
Once you know your stakeholders, make sure you (or your PM if applicable) create a communication plan that ensures their needs to be kept informed are met in a consistent and reliable matter.
Nothing builds more trust than saying you’ll do something and then actually doing it in the way and at the intervals you’ve promised.
Elements you can integrate in your communication plan are:
- Informal project updates
- Status reports
- Scheduled meetings
Basically, you write down when these will take place, how long they will take and who will be involved. A good communication plan will make sure your stakeholders are well-informed and know there is opportunity along the way to express any concerns or additional requirements.
These 4 steps will not take a lot of time to complete, but they can save you a massive amount of headache and stress down the line and ensure your project is not only successful for the project team, but will raise your profile within the organization as a reliable, trustworthy service provider.
Templates
- Identify Your Stakeholders Template
- Map Your Stakeholders Template
Great job. Thanks Dani