Strong relationships with senior stakeholders is essential

Meet the stakeholders

Stakeholders play a crucial role within a programme or project and have a vested interest in its success. Therefore it’s essential that programme and project managers build positive relationships with them to ensure a well delivered series of outputs. This is done through good communication, collaboration and an enthusiastic approach to delivery.

Three of the senior stakeholders that we work closely with are Glenn Hammons and Michelle Drewery of East Northamptonshire Council (ENC) and Karen Denton of the Borough Council of Wellingborough (BCW). As senior stakeholders of a shared IT service, they’re all committed to the successful delivery of a programme of change.

As with any large-scale change, IT transformation will impact a number of key areas. These include workflow, business rules, what gets automated and perhaps most importantly, corporate culture. Subsequently, by maintaining strong relationships with senior stakeholders we ensure that all key messages are shared collaboratively.

Engagement

This relationship is created and maintained through a series of weekly calls and meetings. As a result we’re able to sustain a solid understanding of our clients’ needs. By producing detailed plans we understand how and when we should engage. These also play an important role in continuing communications with stakeholders.