In this #mtpcon SF+Americas 2022 breakout session, Shyvee Shi, Product Manager at Linkedin Learning discussed influencing without authority in product management.
Watch this video or read on for key highlights from the talk:
- Why is influence important?
- Mindsets to improve your influence
- The 5Cs framework to live by
Why is influencing so important?
As product managers, we are in charge of the tone and pace of the product, we may not know the intricacies and the specific roles of each compartment, but it is our responsibility to ensure that it comes out as a masterpiece, Shyvee opens with. Product managers play a key role in influencing cross-functional teams, however, they often don’t have full authority or understanding on the stakeholders that they work with.
Mindsets to improve your influence
Trust must be earned: we need to think of trust as a social currency, Shyvee explains. You can’t expect to gain trust and influence with your first social encounter with somebody. Start to fill up your relationship piggy bank first. This may mean giving something first to earn their trust.
Commit to the problem, not the solution: The most powerful way to influence, is using it to learn and negotiate, Shyvee says. Make sure you don’t come across as just selling something, dedicate yourself to dealing with the problem at hand to gain influence.
Co-create and co-elevate: Work together with your team to come to a shared solution. Give up ownership and don’t worry about the credit, Shyvee explains. You are here to serve the solution and nothing else.
It’s an iterative process: Shyvee says how influencing is an iterative process. Always be looking to review and revise your ideas.
The 5C Framework
To further provide us with the tools to influence, Shyvee shared her framework that we can use in our daily practices.
Context: Understand first and influence later. Find out key priorities, motivations, and problems before influencing.
Connect: Get to know people at their personal level and work your way up the trust hierarchy. Really show them that you care by clarifying why you’re there.
Choice: Access the situation to make a choice of what decisions you have to make. Be clear on understanding what is on top of the person’s mind, what motivates the person, and how can you help them.
Craft: Get the framing right to craft the right approach. Flex your style of influence based on your audience.
Commit and Celebrate: Reaffirm your commitment and celebrate the small wins. Doing these can reset the pacing and bring visibility to your teams’ work.
There’s more where that came from!
Explore more #mtpcon SF+Americas 2022 video content or use our Content A-Z to find even more product management insights.
