1. Influencing Stakeholders in Procurement
4th Annual Public Sector Procurement Asia Exchange
Madeleine Tewes
Apsiz Services (Hong Kong) Ltd

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Objectives
Applying success factors
for Sales Professionals
to Procurement
Professionals
Understanding key
concepts related to
influence
Implementing common
influencing models
Practice implementing
these success factors,
key concepts and
models

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Agenda
• Introduction
• Success factors of Sales Professionals
• Key concepts of influence
• Influencing stakeholders
• Conclusion

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Introduction

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Introduction
About Apsiz
• Procurement consultancy supported by a global network of best-in-class partners
• Offices in the UK and Hong Kong and clients around the world
• Dedicated to helping clients transform their commercial performance through
• Managed Sourcing
• Contract and Supplier Management
Services
• Category Strategy Development
• Supplier Financial Risk Assessments
• Supplier Identification
• Business Performance Analysis
Managed
Services
• P2P Process Reviews
• Savings Identification and Delivery
• Procurement Process Reviews
• Contract Compliance Reviews
• Procurement Skills Assessment and
Training – eLearning and face-to-
face
• Permanent and Interim
Procurement Resources
Consultancy and
Advisory
Services
• Spend Analysis
• Spend Recovery
• Category Management Toolkit
• Commercial Intelligence Hub
• Sustainability Analysis
• eSourcing Tool/ eAuctions
• Complex Tender Evaluation
• Contract and Supplier Management
Technology
Solutions

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Introduction
Background
• 4th Annual Public Sector Procurement Asia Exchange
• Recent spotlight on the integrity of Government procurement processes
• Governments globally are driving towards more common and smarter
procurement systems
• Increasing need to develop more effective ways of engaging the stakeholders

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Introduction
Exercise
• Think about a person in Procurement who successfully influences their stakeholders
• Some examples
• Helen Clegg: Knowledge Director for the Procurement & Analytic Solutions’
Practice of A.T. Kearney
• Cindy Dunham: General Manager of Global Process Architecture at Rio
Tinto
• Marc Engel: Chief Procurement Officer at Unilever
• Past boss or colleague
• Write down the factors/ reasons/ tricks that you think made them successful
• Do you currently utilise these factors/ reasons/ tricks to successfully influence your
stakeholders?

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Exercise Results
Factors/ reasons/ tricks that made those procurement
professionals successful in influencing their stakeholder
• The factors/ reasons/ tricks you think made them successful include:
• Use of emotion (greed, ego, fear) to get the desired decision
• Logical business case
• Vision
• Good/ right decision is requested
• Have the experience
• Explain the benefits
• Use facts
• Present a win-win scenario
• Fits into the business strategy

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Exercise Results
The factors/ reasons/ tricks that you think made them successful
but you don’t utilise
• The factors/ reasons/ tricks to successfully influence your stakeholders that you are
you not using enough include:
• Emotion – start/ stop at fact/ just focus on tangibles
• Facts – not enough preparation/ not available
• Tailoring influence tactic – need to learn from past experiences

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Success Factors for Sales Professionals

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Success Factors for Salespeople
Introduction
*Herb Greenberg, Harold Weinstein and Patrick Sweeney. How to Hire & Develop Your Next Top Performer: the
five qualities that make salespeople great. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2001, pp. 9.
Empathy
Focus
Responsibility Optimism
Ego-drive

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Success Factors
Empathy
Ability to identify and
react accurately to the
behaviour and
emotions of customers
Identify other people’s
feelings/frustrations
objectively without
necessarily agreeing
with them
Ability to establish
rapport easily and put
people “at ease” in
their presence
Good listening skills
Curiosity—asks
questions that require
more than a yes or no
answer

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Success Factors
Focus
Goal-orientated and have
the ability to articulate their
goals clearly and assign
timelines
Do not depend upon the
sales manager for direction
or guidance
Possess the self-discipline
and conscientiousness to
service customers and
develop the business from
that customer on successive
sales calls
Clear, direct answers to
questions
Balance with empathy so
the person listens and
identifies with the customer
while keeping focused on
translating their goals into
solutions for the customer

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Success Factors
Responsibility
Possess an appropriate
sense of urgency, as
exemplified in the need to
see the sale progress and to
bring situations to a
resolution
Anticipate consequences
and evaluate alternatives
before acting
Tend to not have excuses
for a situation and take
action when situations
require action
Maintain a positive outlook
towards situations and
people—tends to admire,
and not to criticize a lot
Can accept valid criticisms
and suggestions for
performance improvement

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Success Factors
Optimism
Initiative and the ability
to focus on
opportunities and
solutions
Focus on what can be
done as opposed to
what cannot be
accomplished
Refusal to allow
rejection on one sales
call to affect their
ability to perform on
the next
Persistence in forcing
an important issue even
in the face of possible
rejection

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Success Factors
Ego-Drive
Enjoy competitiveness
and constantly look for
ways to measure
themselves against their
peers
Possess leadership
qualities and is not
afraid to exert pressure
to influence others
Enjoy sales as a
profession for it
provides personal
gratification and ego
enhancement
Determined to win and
willing to take risks

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Success Factors
Hot Tips from the Professionals
“Our company’s best sales tip is building a
great relationship with customers. We
believe in becoming a trusted partner in
business and with that, the customers will
keep coming back. If you go above and
beyond, customers will also tell friends
and colleagues. Your network will grow.
”Deborah Sweeney CEO, MyCorporation
“Depending on where we sit around the
business table, we see the same things
differently. Appreciate the differences.”
Babette Ten Haken management and
business coach
‘’Speak to your clients in a language they
understand. Talking over heads never wins
business.” Stephanie Onken Marketing
Coordinator, The Hayzlett Group
“Today’s self-educating buyer doesn’t want
to be sold. They want to make the right
buying decision. Your job is to help them
complete their education in a manner that
favors your product or service. “ Tom
Martin Founder, Converse Digital
“I believe that many sales pros are too
focused on themselves and not their
prospect. Reaching their own goal is top
priority rather than adding value for their
prospect.” Paul Alves CEO, AG Sales works

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Success Factors
Hot Tips from Clients and Colleagues
Understand your
audience and tailor your
influencing tactic to them
Be factual above
anything else
Have some standard
approaches you can use
in situations you are in
regularly – reflect and
refine as you go
Win-win is the only way
Don’t get frustrated with
‘difficult stakeholders’ –
just keep trying different
approaches until you find
the one that works
Brand your procurement
function and stay in
character – are you fairy
godmothers or the book
keepers

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Influencing Skills

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Influencing Skills
Key concepts: Definitions
• Power is defined as a persons ability to influence others
• Influence is what managers have when they use power is such a way
that it results in a behavioural response from their stakeholders
• Influence can be defined as a force one person exerts on someone else
to induce a change in their behaviours, opinions, attitudes, goals, needs
and values

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Influencing Skills
Key concepts: 7 Types of Power
• Seven types of power
Source Type Influence on Others
Coercive Power Position The ability to impose sanctions or punishment to gain
compliance
Reward Power Position The ability to provide rewards or recognition to gain
compliance
Legitimate Power Position The right to influence the activities of others based on
job title or position
Expert Power Personal Respect gained based on skills, experience or expertise
Referent Personal Positive personal traits or integrity
Information Power Position and Personal Possession of or access to, valuable information
Connection Power Position and Personal Access to others who can provide rewards or
sanctions

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Influencing Skills
Goals
• You influence your stakeholder to do what you need them to do, i.e.
amend the Scope of Work, agree to a Contract Award or even just take a
meeting with you
• Your stakeholder feels:
• Involved in the process
• Valued and respected
• Assured they are not being manipulated
• Committed to the task
• Confident the task/ change can benefit them

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Influencing Skills
Model One: 5 Steps
Tell the
impact
Understand
the
challenge
Share a
solution
Reminder of
benefits
Gain
agreement

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Influencing Skills
Exercise
Tell the
impact
Understand
the
challenge
Share a
solution
Reminder of
benefits
Gain
agreement
• Break into groups of three
• One buyer, one technical
stakeholder and one observer
• Buyer is to follow the 5 Step
Model to influence the
technical stakeholder to agree
a contract award decision
• Observer is to provide
feedback

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Exercise Results
Five Step Model
• The additional factors/ reasons/ tricks that can help you be successful at influencing
your stakeholders that were identified based on practicing the 5 Step Model include:
• Questioning the challenge the other person is presenting to make sure you
understand what problem needs to be solved
• Asking what the other person wants and being prepared to discuss
• Making several suggestions that they can choose from
• Being
• Optimistic
• Flexible
• Persistent
• Patient

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Influencing Skills
Model Two: Tactics
1. Rational Persuasion
• Logical arguments and
factual evidence
• Expert Power
2. Inspirational Appeal
• Arouse enthusiasm by
appealing to the
values, ideals and
aspirations of your
stakeholders
• Referent Power

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Influencing Skills
Model Two: Tactics
3. Consultation
• Need your support so
will seek your assistance
or modify your proposal
to get it
• Reward, Coercive or
Legitimate Power
4. Ingratiation
• Get you in a good mood
before you ask for
something
• Reward Power

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Influencing Skills
Model Two: Tactics
5. Exchange
• Quid Pro Quo
• Reward Power
6. Personal Appeal
• Appeals to your
feelings of loyalty
• Referent or
Reward Power
7. Coalition
• Get someone
else to persuade
you to comply
• Use someone
else’s support as
reason for you to
comply
• Coercive Power

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Influencing Skills
Exercise
• Break into pairs
• Work through each tactic (Rational Persuasion, Inspirational Appeal,
Consultation, Ingratiation, Exchange, Personal Appeal, Coalition) by one
person trying to use it to influence the other person to agree to a Scope
of Work with a reduction in technical capability to fit the budget
• Agree which is the most effective and discuss why

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Exercise Results
Tactics
• The tactics that were most effective included:
• Rational persuasion
• Consultation
• Personal Appeal
• Some of the additional factors/ reasons/ tricks that can help you be successful at
influencing your stakeholders that were identified in this activity included:
• Use scenarios
• Educate your stakeholders about the cycle time procurement needs and about
the golden triangle (Price, Time and Quality)
• Be positive
• Ensure you have a clear RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed)
• Provide alternate views and ideas

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Influencing Skills
Model Three: Push/ Pull
• Push tactics raise your status but reduce your stakeholders
• Pull tactics reduce your status but increase your stakeholders
Push
Pull

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Influencing Skills
Model Three: Push/ Pull
Push behaviours
• Statements of fact, making speeches
• Statement about objectives
• Demands for agreement on specifics
• Demands for commitment
• Expressions of opinion
Pull behaviours
• Asking about values and principles
• Questions about needs and objectives
• Probing for feelings and perceptions
• Asking for explanations and examples
• Listening and following up

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Conclusion
• Successful Sales Professionals have five traits which Procurement Professionals can
use:
• Empathy
• Focus
• Responsibility
• Optimism
• Ego-drive
• Influence is what managers have when they use power is such a way that it results in a
behavioural response from their stakeholders
• Three models have been suggested to help you influence your stakeholders
• 5 Step Model
• 7 Tactics
• Push/ Pull

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Conclusion
Objectives Review
Applying success factors
for Sales Professionals
to Procurement
Professionals
Understanding key
concepts related to
influence
Implementing common
influencing models
Practice implementing
these success factors,
key concepts and
models