The Key to Getting Leadership Buy-In

You know your company needs it. The brand refresh. The market validation. The internal alignment. But your boss just wants more leads.

Sigh.

I’ve been there. My former leadership team would brag about bringing in smart folks and subsequently getting out of the way so people could do their best work. Yet these same leaders created unnecessary roadblocks to my creative and tactical output, leaving me feeling like Truman Burbank just trying to go to freakin Fiji.

At risk of an overgeneralization, leadership (think C-levels, board members, investors) likes numbers. Their brains enjoy spreadsheets of neat little black tables with predictable numbers that scale, supported by a magic formula that your team has come up with. No anxiety there! 💁‍♀️

The good news is: numbers = data. Whether qualitative or quantitative, building the case for your next strategic move can be pitched objectively, turning the tone of the conversation from “who wants what” to making collaborative informed decisions. Ever feel anxious before presenting an idea? That can change if you’re talking about data from a third party perspective rather than an idea on its own, which feels personal.

During my 1:1 coaching sessions, the unequivocally most common goal that I hear is the need to prove something to leadership. It’s not that leadership doesn’t care (at least some of the time), it’s often that approving a promotion or a strategic initiative is in competition with untold requests from other employees. A great leader values efficiency, strategy, and data. Here’s where you come in.

1. Tie your role’s success metrics to business KPIs

This is as self-preserving as it is relevant to your boss. By focusing solely on how your individual role can support business goals, you aren’t promising that the entire success of that goal falls on your plate., Instead, you’re creating accountability with leadership around the importance of that goal, and the time you spend dedicated to it. (If your company doesn’t have clearly communicated business goals that are actionable and attainable, this article won’t be of much use to you, and also, eesh.)

2. Compile a relevant data set

Aside from conducting secondary research to validate your proposed approach, benchmark everything. Identify where your brand *should* be based on the business’s goals, and show where you are today. This brings decision-makers into the process rather than pitching to them. Ask if, based on the data presented, they agree that your strategy is a strong method of attaining goals to create accountability and a collaborative decision making process.

3. Don’t take no as defeat

Responses have insights. Ask strong questions to get to those insights. Some examples:

• What are the key factors determining your decision against this approach?
• Can you envision possible scenarios in which you would say yes?
• How are you evaluating the importance of <goal> against the key factors you described preventing you from saying yes?
• What are the parameters for me to consider when developing a revised strategy, that will get us to a mutual yes?

Need more help? I love questions and new friends. DM me anytime on LinkedIn, Instagram, or Twitter.