Getting Buy-In from Stakeholders for New Software

Ever presented rock-solid research only to hear "Thanks, but we're going with our gut on this one"? Securing stakeholder buy-in is rarely about the quality of your work. It's about something deeper. When you’re dealing with a research trust gap, ask yourself 5 questions. 👽 Are you speaking alien to earthlings? When you say jargon like "double diamond" or "information architecture," your stakeholders hear gibberish. Business leaders didn't learn UX in business school—and most never will. Translate everything into business outcomes they understand. Revenue growth. Customer retention. Cost savings. Competitive advantage.  Speak their native language, not yours. ⏰ What keeps them awake at 3am? Behind every skeptical question is a personal fear. That product manager who keeps shooting down your findings? They're terrified of missing their KPIs and losing their bonus. Have honest conversations about what they're personally on the hook for delivering. Then show how your research helps them achieve exactly that. ❓Are you treating assumptions as facts? You might think you know what questions matter to your stakeholders. You're probably wrong. Before starting research, explicitly ask: "What questions do you need answered to make this decision?" Then design your research to answer exactly those questions. ⚒️ Are you dying on the hill of methodological purity? Sometimes you have 8 hours for research instead of 8 weeks. Being dogmatic about "proper" research methods doesn’t always pay off. Focus on outcomes over process. If quick-and-dirty gets reliable insights that drive decisions, embrace it. 🍽️ Are you force-feeding them a seven-course meal when they wanted a snack? Executives need 30-second summaries. Product managers need actionable findings. Junior team members need hands-on learning. Tailor your approach to each one. You can also use my stakeholder persona mapping template here: https://bit.ly/43R7wom What’s the best advice you’ve heard about dealing with skeptical stakeholders?

😅 Ever build an awesome new process, then realize you forgot to tell anyone about it? Yeah, me too. (Oops.) It's tempting to just flip the switch and say, "Ta-da! Go forth and use!" But we know how that ends... usually with confusion and some creative excuses. 🥴 The truth is: building it is the easy part. Bringing people along—that's where the real leadership magic kicks in. ✨ Here's what actually works (learned the hard way!): 👉 Admit you’re late to the party. A simple, “Hey, we built this, and honestly should’ve talked to you earlier—can we talk now?” goes a looooong way toward trust. (Transparency wins!) 👉 Swap "any feedback?" for real talk: "How would your team break this?" (Yes, seriously.) "If you could tweak one thing to make life easier, what would it be?" "Does this feel like it'll actually help, or did we just invent more busywork?" 👉 Context, not commandments. People resist "because I said so." They embrace "here's why this helps, and what we're trying to achieve." (Clarity unlocks buy-in faster than authority ever could.) 👉 Tiny moments of teamwork. Pilots, feedback loops, quick huddles, group chats—give stakeholders a chance to shape the outcome, even if it’s small. Ownership is a powerful motivator. 👉 Prepare for adoption (for real!). No documentation, training, or support? Congrats, you've built a shiny new paperweight! 🥳 At the end of the day, people don't resist change—they resist change done TO them instead of WITH them. I'd love to hear your stories! 👇 Ever rolled out something great (or not-so-great) and learned these lessons firsthand? Share your wisdom (or hilarious fails!) in the comments. #Leadership #RealTalk #ProcessAdoption #Collaboration #StakeholderEngagement #ChangeManagement #LaughAndLearn #PeopleFirst

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.

Why 73% of Projects Fail and How I Stopped Losing Stakeholder Support Let me tell you a quick story. Years ago, I was leading an ops overhaul that was supposed to streamline internal reporting. Everything looked good on paper, timelines, budget, resource allocation. I checked every box… Except one: I didn’t fully engage the stakeholders who would actually use the system every day. 🚨Big mistake. Within 3 weeks of launch, adoption lagged, teams worked around it, and leadership questioned the ROI. That’s when it hit me—involvement doesn’t equal alignment. Just because stakeholders are informed doesn’t mean they’re invested. So I changed my approach. Here’s what I did: • Identified key influencers across departments, not just top execs, but daily users and frontline managers. • Used long-form discovery sessions to understand their actual pain points (not just the ones listed on a dashboard). • Built a feedback loop into every sprint cycle. Small changes. Real-time validation. • Created internal linkages between project goals and departmental KPIs (this one’s huge). The result? 🎯 41% faster implementation. ✅ 3X higher adoption in the first 30 days. 💬 Consistent stakeholder engagement from kickoff to post-launch. Why does this matter for you? If you’re a project manager, ops lead, or department head, especially in finance, tech, or healthcare, here’s your reality: 📌 You’re juggling timelines, compliance, and team bandwidth. 📌 You’re expected to “drive transformation” and still “not disrupt the day-to-day.” 📌 You’re measured by results but those results start with buy-in. So ask yourself: Are you just updating stakeholders or are you empowering them to shape outcomes? That’s the difference between a delivered project and a sustained solution. If you’re tired of rework, delays, or lukewarm adoption, start by rethinking how you engage your stakeholders. Involve early. Involve meaningfully. Involve often. ✅ Start with a 30-minute alignment session before you build your next project charter. ✅ Don’t just collect feedback—co-create the solution with the people who live it. You’ll thank yourself later. Let’s stop managing projects and start leading with people who matter. #ProjectManagement #StakeholderEngagement #LeadershipInAction