February 20, 2015

I met John at the cafe the other day. (i’m sure you know its not his real name). I love my Latte and tiny little deserts. Not sure what John came for. But we had known each other professionally for at least 15 years and have kept in touch sporadically over the years.

John updated me on what he had been up to since the last time we spoke - places he had worked, roles he had handled, and reasons he had left those places. He had just exited a company recently - in the last month - and was looking for the next place to move to.

Let me tell you a few things about John. He is an amazing guy. His technical expertise is unparalleled and i would recommend John to any client in a heart beat. But he seemed to have had issues staying in any one company or thriving at those companies. One thing became obvious like a common theme as he explained his reasons for the various exits -- John did not understand the first thing about stakeholder management.

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Stakeholder Managementand how this impacts your career growth

February 20, 2015

Many Executives shy away from this.Some think its the same as office politics - which many people still regard as an extremely dirty word (This is dealt with in another article). Some think it applies only to projects. Others refer to this when they are talking about clients, board members and suppliers.

Managing stakeholders is a critical skill for career growth. It starts with understanding who your stakeholders are, what their expectations are, and managing those expectations. As a senior executive, you will be very upset if your staff comes to a performance review discussion, without any clear understanding of what his job role or performance expectations were for the last 6 months of review. In the same vein, you have no business not knowing what the expectations of your stakeholders are and tailoring your activities to such.

John has always been a straight shooter. He says it as it is. Not a bad trait. The world could do with more of that actually. But he never - in all 20 years of his career - learnt to present himself in the right light.

Its all about the presentation.Your boss. Your boss’ boss. Members of the executive committee. Senior management team. Your colleagues. Your subordinates. Clients you interact with regularly. These are all members of an orchestra. The music is your career. The director of the orchestra? You!

Gone are the days we just feel our way through the system, hoping that the system is kind to us, picks us out of obscurity and shines the limelight on us. In this present day cut throat economy, you have to work smarter and not just hard. You have to figure out early what you want - Not spend 10 years moving from client services, to marketing, to HR, to business development, to data analysis, to research before wham! you discover your passion lies in advertising and PR. And after figuring out what you want, you have to work towards being the best at it, and being recognised as the best at it.

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February 20, 2015

There’s just too much noise in today’s modern world. Honestly, don't you think you need to do things differently to be recognised?

Below are 4 of my suggestions on what you can do to as the director of your orchestra - managing the stakeholders who are involved in shaping your career:

Build your personal credibilityI’m sure you are aware that unless body odour is tackled, a hundred layers of clothing cannot hide it. Same goes for bull s..t. You cannot claim to be what you are not. Not for long anyway.

Be efficient. Know your onions. Be trustworthy and dependable. Be that person who can be trusted to go the extra mile to get things done.

Build good relationships. Common, whats the point of getting the crown as the most horrible person in the office? None. Find out the expectations of people around you (stakeholders) and manage those expectations. Don't say yes to anything (and then fail at everything), don't be an antagonist and don't be that guy who is so egoistical, he cant see beyond his nose.

Learn to communicateSometimes we think communication is all about talking and listening. A huge part of communication lies in the presentation. Ever heard people say - “it wasn't what she said, but how she said it that got to me?”

Ask yourself - before you make that phone call, send that email, enter that meeting - who is my audience, whats the crux of the message i want to present, what are the possible challenges (buy-in, difference of opinion, multiple agendas etc) and how do i manage them? Then tailor your message based on this information.

In communicating, seek to differentiate between your stakeholders and identify the most critical ones. Sometimes you need to hold informal meetings on an issue with a selected few prior to the formal presentation of your ideas.

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February 20, 2015

Negotiate Conflicts So you presented your ideas, raised your concerns, showcased your work, and it wasn't met with the 100% applause you were hoping for. Not everyone will agree with you all the time. Heck, people don't even agree with God all the time. Don't throw your hands in the air and give up. Don't say, they are stupid, i know better, let them rot. Don't say, its not my company, if it goes down i’ll find another, cant kill myself, i’ll be vindicated in the future.

In the heat of the moment when you are upset, yeah… go ahead and vent. But after the dust has settled and you’ve had time to think it through, go back to the drawing board. Objectively assess the situation, analyse the players involved, ask yourself what the real issue was, what could be done differently and the next steps.

Its ok to toot your hornI first came across the work of Peggy Klaus over 10 years ago when she wrote a book “Brag! The art of tooting your own horn without blowing it”. I bought the tape and I’ll confess i was a bit uncomfortable with the concept at first - well…old school thinking says, just be the best and you’ll get the recognition you deserve. Old school thinking also says, tooting your horn is pride, which is in poor taste, and letting other people toot your horn on your behalf is way better.

Well…not so much anymore. What you need to learn - which is part of what peggy tried to teach in her book - is balance. Everybody is trying to toot their horns. Even presidents are saddled with that job. Nobody has the time to find your horn for you. Find it, oil it, blow it, and you will get crusaders. Hide it, hoping for others to find it for you, and it will rot.

Own your success. Learn emotion intelligence in communicating as this will help you strike a balance in showcasing your success. But don't hide. It takes practice to find that balance. Practice talking about your success and in the right moderation. So you don't come across as an unconvincing mouse, but you don't come across as a “walking billboard” either.

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February 20, 2015

Being honest with yourself, objectively assessing your career and growth pattern, and deterrents and researching what you can do to manage it, will help to catapult your career. If all else fails, find a career coach. They are everywhere!

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Femi is the Managing Partner of Quo Magnis Limited, a human resource consulting firm. She writes a lot of articles on workplace effectiveness, managerial and leadership effectiveness, youth and women empowerment. She is a Trainer and a career coach and can be reached via twitter @femi8m. She lives in Lagos, Nigeria.