Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Talking to the C-Suite? Then Speak Their Language!

One of the issues I typically see PM’s and FM’s struggling with is getting C-Suite buy-in to project and operational proposals. Yet, when you ask those who reside in the C-Suite they often respond that the information presented to them fails to address their concerns and needs. What then, are their information needs?

Understanding the priorities within your own C-Suite is critical to answering that question. Then you can decide what tactics support those priorities and craft your communications to articulate your project in a manner that clearly identifies its implications to those needs. Generally speaking, the list of things C-Suite executives care about is actually fairly short:

Alignment
Competitive Advantage
Compliance
Customer Satisfaction
Governance
Profitability
Risk Management

Put your project proposals and updates into these terms and your message will be heard and understood.

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