PMIWDC Industry Insights |Stakeholders—The Key to Project Success

Stakeholder engagement is key to project & career success. Surveys report that good stakeholder engagement is a leading factor to project success, and poor engagement contributes to failure. Despite this data, this crucial domain is often neglected.

If stakeholder engagement is so critical, why is it often relegated to a second-tier priority? Stakeholder engagement is more complex than other management domains because it requires us to deal with people, their feelings, and perceptions. Spotting and responding to shifting expectations require regular monitoring and vigilance. We all have stakeholders. They expect or want something from us, and we need something from them in return—even if it is just passive support. Leaders at all levels in the organization will benefit from actively managing their stakeholder relationships.

In this webinar, Alan Zucker will share best practices developed over his career. In his coaching practice, he has shared these lessons to help leaders and executives be more effective. He also teaches these techniques in his classes at George Mason University, the University of Georgia, and the National Institutes of Health. Attendees will learn common models for understanding stakeholder needs, interests, power, and engagement. By assessing our stakeholders, we can pinpoint areas of concern and commonalities of interest. With this knowledge, we can forge more productive and valuable relationships. Mr. Zucker will introduce his Stakeholder Relationship Model which is a tool for visualizing the power and strength of relationships among stakeholders. This map can be used to overcome obstacles or build coalitions around important decisions.

Attendees will be given worksheets that will help them analyze stakeholders using the process described in the presentation. People are often surprised by the insights gained through this assessment. Time is allocated for a brief exercise to experience the framework.