1 week ago
7
As an executive who has begun making plans for the long term, you have started to glimpse stakeholders others usually miss. They may not be people – consider the environment, for example – but their health and survival matter to your goals.
So how do you go about giving them a voice?
Let’s imagine that you are a hotelier. Your tourists gush about the beauty of your beachfront property. You smile with pride.
But as you prepare for your next strategic planning session, you are worried about the future. In the short term you remain profitable, but the truth is that the beach is rapidly eroding.
Your long-time visitors, some returning for a 30th trip, take you to task. They are alarmed.
However, it’s not as if you can’t notice the changes taking place for yourself. But as in the parable of the boiling frog, the transformation is so gradual that you hardly notice them. For their part, your established clientèle see the decline clearly and keep urging you to act.
Unfortunately, past executive discussions failed to solve the problem. So in your upcoming strategy session, you make it clear: the focus will be on the next 15 to 30 years.
Here’s a systematic method of bringing up these questions effectively.
Redefine ‘stakeholders’
When asked to list stakeholders, most managers start with the loudest voices; the most memorable. These are often people who have the most influence and make the most noise. It’s a natural human tendency to respond to urgency and emotion.
But this approach leads to a big mistake. Short-term thinking blinds managers to missing out on stakeholders who are real, but silent. Because no one speaks for them, these quiet stakeholders are easily forgotten. Their concerns slip into the background, unnoticed.
Only at the end of a hotel’s retreat do a few notice that they never really dealt with a looming threat: the inevitable erosion of the beach.
To prevent this problem, start by defining who or what a ‘silent stakeholder’ is in this expanded context:
1. A silent stakeholder is a party, entity or force – tangible or conceptual, real or imagined. We define them through the language we use. For instance, ‘the hotel’s ecosystem’ could be considered a silent stakeholder;
2. In the far future, silent stakeholders contribute to the success of the enterprise;
3. A silent stakeholder is involved in incipient threats. These affect the organisation directly; and
4. Several actions and projects can bring a silent stakeholder into focus, onto centre-stage.
Some will object that the organisation should only worry about what it can control.
To argue against this point of view, prepare stories such as the one about the hotelier. Show how easy it is for executives to be so busy that they overlook the warning signs of their beach becoming another Hellshire.
Recast as partners
It may not hurt to brainstorm a list of silent stakeholders. However, this list is likely to be limited by the immediate history of those doing the exercise.
As you shape your strategy, look for silent stakeholders that have a real, measurable effect – not just theoretical ones.
How can you know if there’s one lurking in the wings, unseen?
In strategy retreats I’ve led, we’ve applied the Balanced Scorecard from Drs Robert Kaplan and David Norton. One part, the “customer’s perspective”, is designed to surface the specific viewpoints of outsiders. They are the ones who benefit from their association with the organisation.
During strategy sessions, it becomes clear that some stakeholders have no voice and are left out. Think about a beach: in the short run, it’s often seen only as a backdrop for tourism—a resource to be used and paid for.
Some would say this is a greedy, short-term mindset.
Instead, look 15 to 30 years ahead. See the ecosystem as a partner, an entity that enjoys a beneficial give and take with your company. Now, the costs of abuse may be more apparent.
Don’t have a beach? Cast the ‘C-suite of the future’ as a silent stakeholder.
Ask yourself: which crucial decisions are you postponing, and how might that force future leaders to face bigger obstacles and costs?
Just imagine how hard it would be for them to reverse a Hellshire-level disaster once it’s reached an advanced stage.
The point is that you can call on silent stakeholders to help you shape the future.
As your strategy develops shape, look for the silent stakeholders waiting in the wings. Ignoring them risks damage that cannot be undone. Today’s strategy must be their voice. Will you choose to listen while you still have the chance?
Francis Wade is a management consultant and author of Perfect Time-Based Productivity. To search past columns on productivity, strategy and business processes, or give feedback, email: columns@fwconsulting.com
English (US) ·