The Hidden Stakeholders That Can Make or Break Your Success

Hey there,

Who are the most important stakeholders for a fractional CTO to win over? 

The C-suite, right? The ones with the purse strings and the corner offices?

Sure, executive buy-in is critical. But there's another, often overlooked group that can wield just as much influence over your success or failure: the individual contributors across all departments.

I’m not just talking about the developers, designers, and QA folkson your tech team. I'm talking about the marketers, the salespeople, the customer service reps, the operations specialists - everyone who makes the business tick. 

Because let's face it - you can have the best strategy in the world, but if the team doesn't believe in it (or in you), it's dead on arrival.

So how do you win over the hearts and minds of the team members across the entire organization? It starts with showing up as a human first, and a CTO second:

• Break down silos. Make a point to engage with non-tech teams. Attend their meetings, understand their challenges, and look for ways technology can support their goals.

• Speak their language. Learn to translate tech-speak into terms that resonate with each department. Show how your initiatives directly impact their KPIs.

• Be visible and available. Don't just hide out with the dev team. Sit with different departments, join their Slack channels, and be present in their world.

• Celebrate cross-functional wins. Did the marketing team's campaign data help inform a product feature? Shout it out. Did a customer service insight lead to a UX improvement? Give credit where it's due.

• Build a network of lieutenants. Identify key influencers in each department who can be your eyes and ears. Invest in these relationships - they'll be invaluable for building consensus and driving change.

• Solicit input early and often. Make it clear that good ideas can (and should) come from anywhere in the organization. Create environments for dissent and debate.

Remember, trust is a two-way street. The more you demonstrate that you value and understand the entire business ecosystem, the more the organization will extend that trust back to you.

Inside the CTOx Accelerator, we dive deep into the human side of technology leadership. Through our training and workshops, you'll hone your skills in empathy, communication, and cross-functional influence. Because the best tech leaders are the ones who can seamlessly bridge the gap between bytes and business value.

So as you step into your next engagement, don't limit your focus to just the tech team or the C-suite. Cast a wider net. 

The allies you cultivate across the entire organization will be the secret weapon that amplifies your impact.

To building trust at every level,
Lior

Lior Weinstein
Founder & Head Coach, CTOx