Change Management Training That Emphasizes Stakeholder Buy-In

New Series: How to bring your team and stakeholders along for the ride — without sounding like you’re empire-building. Leading change comes with invisible resistance — especially at the top. In this 3-part series, I’m breaking down how to enroll execs, peers, and your team towards a strategy or new initiative without making it feel like a power grab. This is Part 1 → Earning executive buy-in (without the pitch deck parade). 🧠 You can’t lead change without trust. Here’s how I earned it. When we introduced our new team charter, I knew the strategy alone wouldn’t win buy-in. Especially at the exec level. Because here’s what senior stakeholders are really thinking when you propose something new: • Is this in service of the company — or your own fiefdom? • Are you building for ego, or customer impact? • Are you asking for resources... or making a case for results? So I made a choice early on: 📌 Take myself out of the equation. 📌 Center the conversation on the customer. 📌 Get ahead of unspoken doubts. How? Lead with external credibility. Before sharing our charter, I showed what “great” looked like: ✅ B2B and B2C brands that built legacies, not just fanbases ✅ Bold examples of customer-led innovation ✅ Programs that made people feel connected, not managed That shifted the lens from “Why is he doing this?” to: ➡ “Why aren’t we doing this already?” The key? Don’t lead with your strategy. Lead with your belief system. Execs don’t need every detail — they need to feel like you’re building for the future they care about and it's grounded in culture and values. 🔁 This is Part 1 of 3 in my series: How to bring your team and stakeholders along — without sounding like you’re empire-building. Next: How I enrolled my peers across functions — without it feeling political. #leadership #stakeholdermanagement #alignment #strategy #executivebuyin #customermarketing

The mistake I made that tanked my programs early in my career: I built customer advocacy & marketing programs for stakeholders, not with them. I’d roll out something I thought was brilliant… only to watch teams ignore it and keep doing things their own way. It wasn’t that they didn’t care. It was that I hadn’t taken the time to understand their goals, their pain points, or the way they actually liked to work. Eventually, it clicked: buy-in comes from co-creation. If people help shape the process, they’re invested in making it work. Now, my “design with, not for” approach looks like this: → Start with conversations: polls, surveys, or 1:1 chats to uncover goals and friction points. → Gather feedback early: share the plan, get reactions, adjust. → Co-create the process: refine together so rollout feels collaborative, not imposed. → Pilot and champion: involve a small group early—when they believe in it, others follow. That shift changed everything. Instead of pushing uphill, my programs now launch with buy-in already baked in.

Struggling to get everyone on board? Some clients complain that they feel like they are hearding cats. I remember leading projects like this and was frustrated until I learned a better way. Here's a step-by-step guide to achieve stakeholder buy-in: 1. Gather Perspectives → Why it works: Provides a complete view of stakeholder positions. ↳ Action: Ask each stakeholder about their understanding of project goals, benefits, and concerns. 2. Identify Misalignments → Why it works: Pinpoints areas needing attention. ↳ Action: List key differences in a shared document, analyzing root causes and impacts. 3. Plan Actions → Why it works: Creates a roadmap for resolution. ↳ Action: Develop specific steps to improve alignment, assigning owners and deadlines. 4. Implement Strategies → Why it works: Addresses concerns systematically. ↳ Action: Adjust project elements as needed and enhance communication to meet stakeholder needs. By following these steps, you'll turn potential roadblocks into a path to project success. — P.S. Unlock 20 years' worth of leadership lessons sent straight to your inbox. Every Wednesday, I share exclusive insights and actionable tips on my newsletter. (Link in my bio to sign up). Remember, leaders succeed together.