Run Stakeholder Alignment

• Decision or initiative requiring alignment
• Stakeholders involved and their current stances

Optional inputs

• Stakeholder map
• Prior alignment attempts and what went wrong
• Decision timeline
• Key concerns or objections known in advance

Upstream context

Works best when:

• Stakeholder map exists
• Decision is defined
• Options are prepared

Downstream handoff

Output can feed:

• communicate-decisions-tradeoffs (aligned decision → communication)
• build-executive-narrative (alignment informs narrative framing)

Instructions

1. Define the alignment goal: what specific agreement or understanding must be reached?
2. Identify who must align (vs. who just needs to be informed).
3. Map each stakeholder's current stance and known concerns.
4. Design the alignment sequence: who to engage first, in what order, through what format.
5. Prepare for each key conversation: their concerns, your response, what you're willing to adjust.
6. Define what success looks like (not just "they didn't object" — but genuine agreement on the key points).
7. Plan follow-up to confirm alignment holds.

Output

Provide:

• Alignment goal
• Must-align stakeholder list with stances
• Engagement sequence
• Preparation per key stakeholder: concerns, responses, negotiable elements
• Success definition for alignment
• Follow-up plan to maintain alignment
• Contingency if alignment isn't reached

Risks / caveats

• "No objections" is not alignment — ask stakeholders to restate their understanding
• Stakeholders who feel steamrolled become active opponents — engage concerns genuinely
• Alignment reached under time pressure is fragile — invest time early, not at the last moment