When I started my career in Change Management a few years ago, I remember my mentor repeatedly highlighting how critical it was to have our Project Sponsor onboard as it could make or break the project. As a young individual with little business acumen and change management experience, I felt terribly ill-equipped to even glance in the direction of the Executive Sponsor, let alone engage with him effectively at the time. What a relief it was when I realised it was my mentor’s responsibility to ensure Sponsorship and engagement with the sponsor.

None-the-less, through the years, this Change Management principle still remains true and with organizations becoming increasingly agile, it has become even more pivotal of a role in ensuring project success. As so beautifully highlighted by my colleagues in previous articles: “Importance of an Active Sponsor” – Maritza Boucher, “Sponsors and the Role they play” – Tumi Seatle, it is evident that Sponsorship needs to play many roles within the Project Team all whilst juggling day-to-day responsibilities.

The roles and responsibilities of the Sponsor, in a project environment, have been well established and documented over the past few years and whilst this may adapt somewhat in the future the basics are clear:

In having studied these well-structured articles and other copious amounts of information around the topic, I can’t help but assume that the focus no longer needs to be on the lack of sponsorship skills. Organisations are starting to take heed as to whom they identify as possible project leads and are building upon these sponsorship capabilities continuously.

The area that we, as change managers, should now focus on is: “How do I effectively engage with my Sponsor to aid in project and his/her success?” A great place to start, preferably before project initiation, is to set up a meeting with your Project Sponsor, Project Manager and yourself, the Change Manager.

In this meeting, it is important to touch on the following points to ensure a valuable outcome:

Project background:

This is particularly useful if any of the parties have not been involved in the project up to this point.

• Understand and review business objectives for this project.
• Understand proposed business benefits that are expected as a result of this project.
• General background information and the journey so far.

Roles and responsibilities:

• Gauge the level of understanding the Sponsor has toward their role.
• Clearly define and agree upon the roles and responsibilities of the Project Sponsor, Project Manager and Change Manager.
• Establish a realistic expectation around the level of involvement required from the Project Sponsor.
• Establish communication and escalation protocols.
• Recognise the level of interdependence between each other’s role.
• Let the Sponsor know that you appreciate and welcome their input and constructive criticism.

Project plans and strategy:

• Understand and review project milestones.
• Understand and review change and communication strategies.
• Understand and review project strategies.
• Establish follow up discussion/feedback mechanisms.

Not only will this meeting assist in clearly communicating expectations, but it will help in “breaking-the-ice” between the key role players and help to set the tone for the relationship moving forward. This task may seem daunting to some, because of possible preconceived ideas around seniority, but is vital in ensuring positive engagement moving forward. It will also allow you to gain confidence by preparing adequately for the discussion with your Project Sponsor.

Some tips as stated by “Think For Change”, for communicating with an Executive Sponsor include:

Engaging them at their level:
There is no need to provide the Sponsor with operational detail unless it is requested, instead align your feedback with how closely the project is operating in regard to the agreed upon scope/budget and timeframe.

Understand the purpose of the discussion:
Keep all meeting content aligned to the purpose of the discussion. Sponsors may request certain bits of information at specific times to guide them in making strategic decisions that are needed within that moment. Keeping it to the point will allow conversations to be goal oriented.

Establish how your Sponsor prefers to receive information/communication:
Do they prefer graphic, dashboard reporting or more of a detailed approach? Establish different buzz words or jargon that they prefer to make use of and include this in your communication. This approach makes it much more relatable to the sponsor and easier to take on.

Get to the point:
Keep in mind current time constraints your Sponsor faces, respect their time and make the discussion worth it. Executive Sponsors have been placed in positions because of their ability to comprehend high volumes of information as well as their capability to make quick strategic decisions on the back of this information. They do not need all the background detailing with every discussion, rather lay your cards on the table early on in the discussion and allow time for Q&A’s.

Prepare, Prepare, Prepare:
Once content has been pulled together for your discussion, be sure to run everything past a different set of eyes. Have all critical project decision makers confirm content where applicable. Ensure your data sources can be trusted and that all calculations are correct, should this be part of the discussion. Pre-empt possible questions the Sponsor may ask and adequately prepare answers for these questions beforehand. Keep all feedback honest and open.

Just a regular person:
Try to keep in mind that sponsors are normal human beings and that they would prefer to have you and the project succeed. Having a relationship based on honesty and respect will be beneficial in the long run, not only for your project relations but for the company as a whole.