Dealing with angry stakeholders

Dealing with angry stakeholders can be a challenge

As a facilitator, it’s important to have a clear plan when approaching a workshop or project where you anticipate that you’ll be dealing with angry stakeholders.

This is real

The following tips are based on a previous stakeholder engagement program run with community members.

It was in relation to the redevelopment of a local park to include residential use, which was intended to fund the reclamation of an adjacent contaminated site. Sort of like two controversies for the price of one!

The client had commissioned a planning consultant to identify a range of options for the redevelopment of the site and community planning workshops were held to get local input.

Here’s how my colleagues and I handled it and what we learnt along the way.

Tips for dealing with angry stakeholders

1. Provide clear information

We sent participants an information pack outlining each option and how it was identified. At the workshop, there were BIG maps to help people clearly identify what was being suggested. This was well received, as several residents weren’t sure who to believe – the client or the opponents of the proposal.

2. Establish the mood

We maintained a calm, friendly and welcoming environment as people arrived. I started out by clearly outlining the intended purpose, outcomes and process for the workshop. I also requested that we operate to agreed ground-rules (aka the ROPES)

3. Highlight independence

We felt some serious tension in the room at the start of each workshop. What worked was each of us outlining our role and that we were not employees of the client. Our role was to run the feedback process and ensure participants views were heard and fed back to the client. It was critical to say that we were independent facilitators with no stake in the outcome.

4. Look for common ground

Prior to getting participant feedback on each option, we asked people what they valued about the site in order to try and elicit some areas of agreement.

5. Take your Teflon outfit

As people got angry, we had to remember that they were angry with the client, not us. If they did start getting personal, we went back to explaining what we were there to achieve and our role in doing it. We made it clear that all views expressed would go back to the client.

6. Leave it there

It was important for us to debrief after each workshop. We wore a fair bit of flak in dealing with angry stakeholders and it was important to leave it at the workshop and not take it home with us – especially after an evening workshop.

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