A complex delivery is a challenge to the status quo. Bringing it to life for all of those around you by creating a compelling story of possibilities is essential. Then, keeping the basis of the story constant, while evolving its detail and content, allows it to be better understood and adopted.
1. Selling a persuasive vision
A great proportion of that thing we call “stakeholder management” is selling. Selling a persuasive vision of an organisational future, less afflicted by the pain-points of the present, to real-life human beings.
Sure, it’s even better if you underpin this with data, and yes, your numbers will have to stack up, but ultimately you’re telling a story, building a narrative of change.
2. Start simple, evolve as you progress
Equally, this narrative can evolve over time, to reflect the things you learn along the way, but a complex, fragmented bundle of technical fixes that only a few can understand may be hard to gain interest and momentum on.
So invest the time early to get your story as straight and as simple as possible. How will you know you’ve got this right? Treat it like any other product you build, test it out with your users, the people in the organisation you want to bring with you. How do they react? Do they glaze over? Can they help you make it better?
3. Stick with it
And then actually use that story, weave it into everything you do. A compelling story stuck in a single strategy document destined for the dusty SharePoint of history is a wasted effort. Don’t be afraid to be repetitive, you may well be sick of telling the same story, but remember that not everyone gets to hear it every day like you do.
There’s a legendary tale about Ford CEO Alan Mulally, in the middle of a transformation that would eventually turn the company around, being challenged to tell a new story. He replied, confused: “Until we achieve these goals, why would we need another one?”
In a multi-year delivery, unless you are absolutely doing the wrong thing, and everything has clearly failed in a burning mess of money and broken hearts, resist the temptation to start a new year with yet another new story.
Over time embellish it with the things you’ve discovered along the way, and talk to people about what they think about the story, and refine it in response to what you hear and are asked.
4. Include the past in the route to the future
Importantly, don’t forget to include the history of what came before. In the middle of a journey to better things it’s easy to lose sight of the worse things we tolerated back at the start, and which we’ve left far behind.
5. Make success part of the story
The details of those successes gained on the way become part of the story. And crucially include the people who have changed within that, demonstrate that this thing you’re trying to do is possible and brings value. So evolve the story again to include the wins and the winners, because the most compelling tale is the one that becomes reality.
This article was first published on LinkedIn in July 2024, part one of a series on themes for complex deliveries.