MOST Analysis

Mission Statement

Stakeholder Optimization is a process by which those who have a particular stake or interest in the outcome of a project or strategy are engaged. A company does not exist in isolation. It exists within a “political” environment populated by all those who have a particular stake or interest in that company. Key leadership and management can build support and avoid negative consequences by utilizing Stakeholder Optimization to establish a systematic process for stakeholder involvement, projecting the right questions to the right people, at the right time. The Stakeholder Optimization plan establishes a ranking system to calibrate interests on a sliding scale in order to optimize the value of feedback from all involved. It strikes the right balance between stakeholder involvement and isolation of the project from external influences in order to achieve delivery on cost and time, while maximizing the benefit for the company and stakeholders. Whether in market research, exploratory panels, employee engagement, or stakeholder consultation – new dimensions of insight and creativity are revealed when people collaborate in generating ideas and making decisions, resulting in long term sustainability, productivity, and alignment.

The first workshop will focus on establishing a baseline for evaluation, and establish the vision, goals, and objectives for the company, collectively called the vision strategy. The vision strategy will be critical in planning what you want to achieve through the initiative and determining the process to get there. People become committed and engaged when they have a full understanding of the common goals and objectives, creating a roadmap to which everyone can adhere. A motivating vision strategy can shape an organization’s behavior, aligning many separate elements. It can empower people who are then able to translate strategy into action.

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Objectives

01. Establish Baseline: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
02. Gathering Data; departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
03. Information Analysis; departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
04. Brainstorm Strategy; departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
05. Vision Statement; departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
06. Establish Outcomes; departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
07. Define Objectives: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. 1 Month
08. Action Plan: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
09. Evaluation and Monitoring: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
10. Review and Revise: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month

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Strategies

01. Establish Baseline: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
02. Gathering Data: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
03. Information Analysis: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
04. Brainstorm Strategy: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
05. Vision Statement: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
06. Establish Outcomes: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
07. Define Objectives: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
08. Action Plan: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
09. Evaluation and Monitoring: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
10. Review and Revise: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.

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Tasks

01. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Establish Baseline.
02. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Gathering Data.
03. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Information Analysis.
04. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Brainstorm Strategy.
05. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Vision Statement.
06. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Establish Outcomes.
07. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Define Objectives.
08. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Action Plan.
09. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Evaluating and Monitoring.
10. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Review and Revise.

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Introduction

The purpose of Stakeholder Optimization is to establish an objective and systematic process for collecting and analyzing data about key individuals who have a particular stake or interest in the outcome of a project or strategy. A company does not exist in isolation. It exists within a “political” environment populated by all those who have a particular stake or interest in that company. Key leadership and management can build support and avoid negative consequences by utilizing Stakeholder Optimization to establish a process for stakeholder involvement, projecting the right questions to the right people, at the right time. Pressure from stakeholders generates change and change increases the complexity of the management task, therefore it is essential to establish a culture of Stakeholder Optimization throughout the company. Bespoke Stakeholder Optimization will accelerate business improvements, mitigate risk, and create a shared vision amongst key influencers. The ultimate aim of Stakeholder Optimization is to put action-oriented tools into the hands of informed professionals who develop a complete set of skills to excel in today’s competitive market.

The first workshop will focus on establishing a baseline for evaluation, and establish the vision, goals, and objectives for the company, collectively called the vision strategy. The vision strategy will be critical in planning what you want to achieve through the initiative and determining the process to get there. People become committed and engaged when they have a full understanding of the common goals and objectives, creating a roadmap to which everyone can adhere. A motivating vision strategy can shape an organization’s behavior, aligning many separate elements. It can empower people who are then able to translate strategy into action.

Establishing your baseline

Important stakeholder groups are inherently known to companies and most companies interact with stakeholders in some form or another as a matter of course. Engagement happens in different formats and at various levels in any organization. However, the process is often ad hoc without a formal structure and process in place. Developing a stakeholder engagement program must begin with establishing a baseline of current activities, types of engagement, stakeholder involvement and personnel involved. This step will provide a systematic way to evaluate your current capacity, and identify gaps, and resources needed to achieve the vision. A baseline will provide a direction as you go through the stakeholder optimization process, as well as assist in establishing a budget for institutionalization. The baseline will be done through a stakeholder GPMMR analysis completed by each department: Group, Personnel, Message, Method, Results.

Group: Which stakeholder groups are you communicating with?

Personnel: Which person, or group of persons is responsible for communicating with a specific stakeholder group?

Message: What is being communicated.

Method: What methods are being employed to accomplish the communications and the frequency of communication.

Results: What feedback are your receiving? How is it being utilized? Is it of value to the department specifically and the organization as a whole?

Strategy Visualization: Vision, Goals, Objectives

One of the first steps in establishing a stakeholder engagement program is to identify the vision and purpose, desired goals, and objectives for securing established outcomes. The scope and boundary of the stakeholder engagement policy should be clearly defined, articulated, and communicated. The background logic and impact of the policy will ensure ownership, enhancing the credibility and support for the business process. Certain decisions made by companies will affect and be of interest to many different stakeholder groups. Having a clear purpose is key to effective stakeholder engagement. Companies need to remain relevant to survive in a challenging business environment and being relevant requires regular interactions with important stakeholder groups. A robust stakeholder engagement model is vital for companies to be able to understand and respond to legitimate stakeholder concerns. Therefore, during the analysis process, senior management will establish a vision strategy for stakeholder engagement. The engagement process will be more meaningful when the company has a vision of what they want to achieve.

Vision – Businesses are forever expanding, working to ensure customer satisfaction, dealing with competition, and concerned with making a profit. To assist in staying on track with the Stakeholder Optimization initiative, it is imperative to establish the company’s ultimate vision for the initiative. The stakeholder vision statement should be based on the overall vision for the company and how you want your Stakeholder Optimization initiative to support and advance that vision by accessing the knowledge, interests, positions, and opinions of key stakeholders to increase support for any given program or initiative of the company. A powerful vision statement can be the differentiator between great results no matter what issues arise and a program that falls apart when first tested. The vision is the company’s reason for implementing Stakeholder Optimization. It is critical that a company, a project team, and even an individual understand the ultimate purpose. Otherwise, the company may have tactics that are directed from different starting points. Without a clear stakeholder engagement vision, it is difficult to evaluate the organizational actions’ ultimate outcomes. It provides a measuring stick for success in order to reach your goals.

Goals – The desired outcomes should include the results and impact your company wants to achieve through its engagement initiative. Getting results is the goal of the overall program. The process of making this happen starts with defining the desired deliverable outcomes. Ultimately, outcomes should support the vision. Projects eventually succeed or fail depending on how well people work together. Engaged people find ways to work through problems, maintain a positive attitude and be constructive, which mitigates risk. Clearly defined outcomes promote clarity of purpose, effective and efficient communications and management support. Stakeholder engagement is a two-way communication process that provides a mechanism for exchanging information and promoting stakeholder interaction. It provides an opportunity to improve stakeholder’s understanding and secure greater support for decisions the company is making. Engagement outcomes should be purposeful, inclusive, timely and respectful.

Objectives – The core premise of Stakeholder Optimization is that success in any environment largely depends on completing successful projects which are done by aligned teams, supported by effective project sponsors. Established objectives will define the programs success. The overall objective is to achieve a transparent decision-making process with greater input from stakeholders and their support of the decisions of the company. Deliberate objectives will help maintain alignment throughout the Stakeholder Optimization process and ensure the team is acting strategically. One principal objective is to provide information about the effects of a program or initiative to improve the positive effects and diminish the negative effects so that the impact can reach an optimal balance among all stakeholders. Some impacts may not be changeable, in which case stakeholders’ perceptions about them can be influenced by the information provided. It is important to translate stakeholder strategies into organization actions by identifying a company’s objectives for engagement. Some companies may seek profits or market share or an improved stock price. Others may choose from a variety of other value propositions or goals. In order to achieve these outcomes, specific actions must be defined.

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