Recently, I wrote about 8 marks of a true professional. Each of these are things that I have noticed or learned over the past 14 years with Chick-fil-A. When combined, these 8 different marks create a person who performs at an elite level while maximizing their impact on those around them along the way. But each of these individual marks, standing alone, hold their own importance as well. 

Of the list of 8, number 2 is probably the one that is most often overlooked. Simply put, it is the truth that a professional “Focuses on key stakeholders”. As I shared in the 8 marks article, “Amateur employees are not concerned with meeting the needs of anyone else. They only focus on what they can get from the stakeholders. The professional understands the importance of these key groups of people, and they go above and beyond to satisfy the needs of others so that everyone wins.”

Each group of stakeholders has varying levels of skin in the game. They are not just along for the ride. Instead, they have a clear vested interest in what happens. They hold the power to do things like fire, promote, give pay raises, speed up or slow down processes, penalize, and much more. So, what are some best practices to ensure that key stakeholders are properly prioritized?

Best Practices

1. Wear their shoes. When we view things from our own perspective, it’s very easy to ignore other stakeholders. But take a moment and view things from their point of view. What are their priorities? What specific pressures are they facing? What would you want/need if you were in their same position? Walk a mile or two in their shoes and you just might gain a whole new outlook!
2. Personalize it. For specific stakeholders, get to know them on an individualized level and then cater to their needs as much as possible. One person wants maximum communication. The very next person, even in the exact same role, wants the least amount of communication possible. Don’t make the mistake of trying to help key stakeholders by providing things that will actually end up HURTING!
3. Never forget. Many of the roles that key stakeholders around us fill are roles that we either have held previously or currently hold. While you might never have been the CEO, you still might know what it’s like to be someone’s boss. We have all been employees, children, humans, etc. Don’t forget what it feels like to fill a specific role. And even if you’ve never held this role, it’s not hard to imagine what it would be like. This should provide insight and empathy as you and I seek to think for those people around us!
4. Respect mirrored reciprocity. Never forget that people generally respond to you in the same way that you engaged with them first. Ignore them and they will ignore you. Be negative towards them and they will respond negatively. Think through how you want key stakeholders to engage with you, then take the initiative to display that same kind of positive behavior to them on a consistent basis!   
5. Value your time. Key stakeholders often have varying levels of influence over your most important asset: TIME. If you can maintain a positive relationship then this can help save you time, which is a big deal. When stakeholders bog down your time, this certainly adds excessive strain. Avoid this if possible!   
6. Monitor intentions. We can all be guilty of crediting ourselves with good intentions and accusing others of bad intentions. “I was late because of traffic”…”He was late because he’s selfish”. We must be careful not to do this, especially with key stakeholders. While it is possible that they are selfish or lazy, it is much more likely that they are just busy people (just like you and I) who are working hard to do a good job. As I once heard it said, “How you view people is how you will treat them”. View key stakeholders in a positive way so that your actions can more easily align with this healthy viewpoint!

In Closing

How many groups of key stakeholders do you have? Who are the specific people who fill roles in those groups? Overall, how are you doing with the 6 best practices mentioned above? Which area can you most improve in?