CX-301d · Module 1

Multi-Stakeholder Value Alignment

3 min read

In enterprise engagements, "the client" is not one person. It is five, ten, or twenty stakeholders who each have different definitions of value. The VP who signed the deal wants strategic impact. The director who manages the engagement wants operational improvement. The end users want their daily work to get easier. Each stakeholder has a different first-value expectation, and failing to meet any one of them creates a pocket of doubt that can grow into dissatisfaction. Multi-stakeholder value alignment means identifying the first-value definition for each key stakeholder and building a delivery plan that addresses all of them.

Do This

  • Identify the top 3-5 stakeholders and conduct individual value definition conversations with each
  • Map the value definitions to a unified delivery plan — find the deliverables that satisfy multiple stakeholders simultaneously
  • Communicate progress to each stakeholder in terms of their specific value definition — the VP gets the strategic update, the director gets the operational update

Avoid This

  • Assume all stakeholders share the same definition of value — the VP and the end user are measuring different things
  • Optimize for one stakeholder's value definition at the expense of others — especially dangerous when you optimize for the sponsor and ignore the users
  • Deliver a single progress report to all stakeholders — each stakeholder needs to hear about value in their own terms