It is possible for stakeholder resistance of a digital strategy redesign to be overcome with clear articulation of what the change will be and how that serves broader business objectives. This could help gain trust from those concerns of the stakeholders by knowing their point of view and showing their input to be of value. Clearly articulate where real tangible benefits may be realized in the form of higher efficiency, greater consumer satisfaction, or competitive advantage-with data and case studies to model what such a redesign could yield. Involve them by asking their ideas and suggestions regarding the process. Make them feel involved in the process.

One approach I've found helpful is showing empathy and listening to understand the root of the stakeholder's resistance. Try to understand where they're coming from and honestly hear their concerns out. It's not imperative that you be able to address all those concerns. But I've found that showing you take their concerns serious and will honestly work to address them where you can, goes a long way toward earning goodwill.

Sound layman, but make sure the stakeholders understand the flag post i.e. org goals has not moved. Second, help stakeholders understand the digital strategy redesign ensures a better approach to instrumenting the operational goals I e. In terms of effectiveness and efficeincy of/in work. E.g. how data driven strategy could help in achieving consumer personalization. In today's vuca env, competitive forces are dynamic, and so should be your strategy esl if you are in a cut throat competitive market.

I have found helpful to identify interests of each stakeholders and illustrate potential benefits with more tangible quantified examples that resonate with them. Ideally the transformation should be led or sponsored by the Business stakeholders or top management of the company not singularly by Digital/IT. Active listening of the concerns and phased approach with iterations can help but managing expectations will be key. Short term, mid term and long term visions are important as big bang approaches can see strong resistance by the stakeholders. Bringing trust by demonstrating quick wins in short term can usually drive better adoption too.

Start by listening to their concerns and addressing them with data-driven insights to build trust and demonstrate the benefits of the redesign. Involve them early in the process, showing quick wins or pilot results to get their buy-in and make them feel invested.

Stakeholder management is an essential, pivotal and continuous practice. One must be mindful that stakeholder perspectives change with time and benefit alignment. One must develop an understanding of the organization and be politically astute while communicating vision and mission driving the change. Skills required 1. Active stakeholder identification, analysis and engagement planning. 2. Honest empathy and active listening 3. Clear and pertinent communication 4. Negotiation and forced communication as applicable.

Stakeholder buy-in comes from proving value, not promising it. Leading digital transformations that achieved 120% subscription growth taught me: Resistance Breakers: - Start with small, high-impact wins - Present data-backed ROI projections - Create phased implementation plans Buy-In Builders: - Regular stakeholder success updates - Competitive analysis benchmarks - Risk mitigation strategies Pro Tip: Build a pilot program showing 30-day results. At TechSolutions, this approach turned skeptics into advocates by demonstrating 40% efficiency gains. Remember: Show stakeholders the bridge before asking them to cross it.

Any kind of resistance from stakeholders must be discussed in detail to understand the open concerns along with contextual reasons behind them. As the next step, it's important to revisit the proposed digital strategy to elaborate on potential data points that can help in addressing reported concerns as much as possible! Any attempt to redesign a digital strategy should be targeted towards achieving strategic value for the stakeholders, and therefore such exercise should include all key stakeholders from day one. The new digital strategy design should exhibit objective benefits as per stakeholders expectations and at the same time explain the "new set of changes" that stakeholders need to adopt incrementally in due course of time.