Influencing Stakeholders Without Formal Authority

Question

Consultants often have to drive change in organizations where they have no direct power over the employees. Describe a time you convinced a cross-functional team to adopt a new process or tool they were initially resistant to.

Accepted Answer

I once had to implement a new CRM system across a sales team that loved their spreadsheets. I had no 'boss' power over them. My strategy was to find a 'Champion.' I identified the most influential, yet tech-skeptical, salesperson and spent a week shadowed by him to understand his pain points. I then showed him how the new CRM could automate his most hated task: weekly reporting. Once he was on board, the rest of the team followed his lead. I also gamified the rollout, creating a leaderboard for data entry. By the end of the month, adoption was at 90%. I learned that influence without authority is rooted in empathy and 'value-first' logic. You have to solve a problem for the individual before you can solve a problem for the organization. At BCG, I will apply this by identifying the 'unspoken needs' of my client counterparts to drive the behavioral change necessary for successful transformations.

Influencing Stakeholders Without Formal Authority

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