The People Puzzle Making the
Pieces Fit @kerry_anne Kerry-Anne Gilowey MIMA Summit · Minneapolis · 15 October 2014

Government I’m an independent content
strategy Volunteer-run associations Web design Technology Startups Healthcare consultant Online retail Financial services Advertising

Government Web design PEOPLE I’m
an independent content strategy Volunteer-run associations Technology Startups Healthcare consultant Online retail Financial services Advertising

PEOPLE Needs Fears Vulnerabilities Passions
Struggles Agendas Past experiences Motivations Prejudices Personality quirks History

Nope.

We’re more like this. Image
credit: Flickr user danielpaquet

Doin’ bizniz.

We talk about Our hard
skills Our knowledge Our experience Our objectives

We don’t talk about Our
weaknesses Our hangups Our emotional history Our hidden agendas

These things affect bizniz.

Practical things first

Keep track of people Image
credit: Flickr user tjblackwell

!
Project team Stakeholders

Collaborators
☺

What should you track? Simple
facts? Sure. But also: Your impressions Personality traits Sticking points, agendas Particular interests, concerns

For your eyes only.

Do one-on-one sessions Image credit:
Flickr user levendis

Ask questions like these... What
are your processes and tools? What’s working, and what’s not? What does your team look like? What other teams and departments do you work with? Where are the bottlenecks? What are your challenges?

...not these What are your
business requirements? What functionality do you need on the website? What buttons do you want on the admin panel?

The magic sentence (I have
no idea how Kristina can hear anything over that loud party hat.) Image courtesy of Sean Tubridy! “Tell me more about that.”

Puzzle time!

Tory Brand Manager THE SITUATION
Brought you onto the project Over-communicator Goes back on decisions Keeps you away from her boss

Tory Brand Manager WHAT’S GOING
ON? Her boss doesn’t respect her She doesn’t know how to defend her ideas Afraid of losing her job Feels she’s on shaky ground with the advent of digital

Tory Brand Manager WHAT CAN
YOU DO? Give her digital resources Discuss ways to defend your ideas together in advance Give her YOUR respect

Felix Business Analyst THE SITUATION
Is inflexible Asks for inappropriate deliverables Values deadlines over progress Hides behind process, project plans

Felix Business Analyst THE SITUATION
WHAT’S GOING ON? He doesn’t really understand the domain of the project He’s afraid that if he deviates he’ll be shown up

Felix Business Analyst THE SITUATION
WHAT CAN YOU DO? Communicate frequently Set up additional sessions to work through subject matter

Sharon Head of Customer Care
THE SITUATION Frequently says, “I’ve been saying that for four years...” Sighs and rolls eyes during meetings when recommendations are made

Sharon Head of Customer Care
THE SITUATION WHAT’S GOING ON? Feels she hasn’t been heard in the past and isn’t going to get the credit she deserves Feels sidelined by the new project, which she doesn’t own

Sharon Head of Customer Care
THE SITUATION WHAT CAN YOU DO? Turn her into an ally Get her on board Give her credit for her ideas in front of other team members

Karl Digital Editor THE SITUATION
Has worked here for a long time Helped build current version of website Seems uncooperative Takes a long time to submit work

Karl Digital Editor THE SITUATION
WHAT’S GOING ON? Feels threatened by negative attention on current site He’s struggling with perfectionism Doesn’t like to show his work

Karl Digital Editor THE SITUATION
WHAT CAN YOU DO? Take time to understand past challenges and history Make sure he feels heard Treat his deliverables as works in progress, collaborate

Laura Compliance Officer THE SITUATION
Keeps changing copy in ways that are not customer-friendly Sees everything in black and white terms

Laura Compliance Officer THE SITUATION
WHAT’S GOING ON? Afraid of being sued Motivated by doing her job well Sees herself as a champion for compliance

Laura Compliance Officer THE SITUATION
WHAT CAN YOU DO? Ask for feedback, not revisions Make a visible effort to understand the regulatory environment

Lee Lead Developer THE SITUATION
Doesn’t seem to trust you Doesn’t get involved at workshops Seems condescending Doesn’t answer your questions in detail

Lee Lead Developer THE SITUATION
WHAT’S GOING ON? Has had bad experiences with non-technical people in the past Developed prejudices

Lee Lead Developer THE SITUATION
WHAT CAN YOU DO? Demonstrate your technical understanding early Create clear, useful deliverables Avoid marketing jargon and buzzwords

Saul Stakeholder from HR THE
SITUATION Difficult to get hold of Uncooperative during interviews, doesn’t open up at all Gives one-word answers or says he doesn’t know Extremely defensive

Saul Stakeholder from HR THE
SITUATION WHAT’S GOING ON? He’s suspicious of the project and your motives Afraid that he doesn’t know the answers

Saul Stakeholder from HR THE
SITUATION WHAT CAN YOU DO? Become his friend Be open about the project objectives and your motives Reassure him Ask about things that he knows well to get him comfortable

Things to look out for

Non-verbal cues

An ongoing conflict Image credit:
Flickr user etolane

Passions and agendas

The silent ones

History

Putting the pieces together

Everyone
has their
reasons.

Everyone has their reasons. He’s
scared of taking responsibility. She’s struggling with perfectionism. He’s worried about looking stupid. She’s afraid that she’ll be blamed.

Solving the people puzzle 90%$
Asking why The rest

Behaviour is frequently situational.

The usual way
Encounter
objection

The usual way Encounter objection
React instinctively

A better way
Encounter
objection

A better way Encounter objection
Stop and consider

A better way Encounter objection
Stop and consider Respond thoughtfully

Be just as empathic with
your team members and stakeholders as you are with your customers and readers.

Thanks for listening! Kerry-Anne Gilowey
kerryanne@augustsun.co.za http://augustsun.co.za http://about.me/kerryanne @kerry_anne