Stakeholder Conflict Scenarios
Stakeholder Conflict: Champion vs. Blocker
Your Champion in Marketing and a senior Blocker in IT are publicly disagreeing on email threads. The deal is stalling.
The situation
Mid-cycle deal at a 3,000-person enterprise. Your Champion (Lila, VP Marketing) is pushing hard. The Blocker (Marcus, CIO) has started replying-all with concerns about platform overlap with an existing tool. The CEO is CC'd on the latest thread. Marketing and IT have a known political tension at this company.
Key stakeholders
- Lila OkaforchampionVP Marketing (Champion)
- Marcus ReedblockerCIO (Blocker)Owns the existing tool that overlaps with yours.
- Aisha BelloneutralCEOWatching, not engaging — yet.
Step 1
Decision pointIt is Monday morning. The reply-all thread escalated over the weekend. Lila just texted you, 'We need to do something.'
What is your first move?