Full Case Study: Accommodating Different Stakeholder Needs and Concerns
Bringing Momentum to a Stalled Project
Can you relate?
You’re on a project that’s stalled. Everyone has good intentions, but decisions keep getting revisited and real progress feels elusive.
The Real-Life Situation
A colleague had been working with a client for several months. The client’s team had experienced frequent turnover and shifting priorities during that time. Although agreements were reached during meetings, stakeholders would raise concerns later after they’d had time to consider the tradeoffs. Momentum was fading and everyone was feeling a bit discouraged.
The Role(s) I Played
I stepped in where my colleague left off. My mandate was to bring fresh energy and get the project moving again.
Approaching the Challenge
Getting Focused
I first reviewed everything that had been done so far, flagged unresolved decisions, and identified what still needed to be accomplished.
With the help of the project manager, I laid out the timeline and the risks if there were further delays.
Building Trust
I took time to understand what was behind the different stakeholder’s concerns.
Instead of presenting open-ended decisions, I offered a few viable options with their trade-offs clearly outlined.
I described how each option was or was not able to address the concerns I’d uncovered, before they were even raised.
Documenting Decisions
Before each meeting, I sent out an agenda with a clear list of decisions that needed to be made.
During meetings, I stuck to the agenda and transcribed notes live, ensuring I accurately captured all views, and validating the decisions that were being made.
Afterwards, I sent out a copy of my notes which recorded all tradeoffs considered, viewpoints offered, and final decisions made.
Respecting How People Learn
Although this case study is more about stakeholders than learners, the principle of respecting how different groups operate best is still relevant. This particular team needed me, as a leader, to provide more boundaries in contrast to other teams who have required encouragement to think outside the box.
Facilitating Application
While I wasn’t facilitating application, I was facilitating the making of decisions that would stick, and not need to be revisited. I needed people to remember that their concerns had actually been addressed as much as I needed them to remember what decision was reached. I did this by sharing detailed records of our conversations.
Outcomes That Matter
The training we were building was on a sensitive topic that was quite personal to some of our stakeholders. This meant that in addition to the larger goals of the business, individuals had unspoken goals of their own. Where possible, I did my best to learn what those goals were and to identify to what extent we might be able to achieve them as well.
So What Happened?
Decision fatigue was reduced. Trust was built. Stakeholders were able to remember when and why they made specific decisions reducing requests to revisit them.
The team regained momentum, aligned quickly, and met revised deadlines. The client’s project manager privately shared surprise at how fast I built trust with the team and restored forward movement.
Actionable Insights
- When people aren't sure if others share their concerns, they will feel the need to defend their position and scrutinize decisions. But if you demonstrate that you value their concerns, they will be more willing to explore options and consider compromises.