Coaching Stakeholders

<p>Christian Idiodi sits down with SVPG partner Chris Jones to unpack the often-ignored other half of “empowered teams”: coaching the stakeholders. They dig into why stakeholders often feel like the enemy, what “healthy” actually looks like in the product operating model, and how trust, context-sharing, and outcome-thinking change the relationship. They also get practical about handling “because I said so,” avoiding the stakeholder “black hole,” and shifting finance from funding projects to funding teams and outcomes.</p><p>–</p><p>Today’s episode will discuss:</p><ul><li>What makes someone a “stakeholder” and why product teams can’t pretend they’re optional</li><li>What a healthy stakeholder relationship looks like</li><li>Why stakeholder trust has to be earned</li><li>How to get context when stakeholders tell you “because I said so”</li><li>How to keep stakeholders engaged without hijacking teams</li><li>Predictability without pretending roadmaps are fortune-telling</li><li>How to avoid the stakeholder “black hole” through transparency</li><li>Why postmortems are critical, even when outcomes miss</li></ul><p>–</p><p><strong>References:</strong></p><ul><li>Amazon: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/">https://www.amazon.com/</a></li><li>ChatGPT: <a href="https://chatgpt.com/">https://chatgpt.com/</a></li><li>Google: <a href="https://www.google.com/">https://www.google.com/</a></li></ul><p>–</p><p><strong>SVPG on stakeholders:</strong></p><ul><li>Articles: <a href="https://www.svpg.com/stakeholders-and-the-product-model/">https://www.svpg.com/stakeholders-and-the-product-model/</a></li></ul><p>–</p><p><strong>Where to find Chris Jones:</strong></p><ul><li><p>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisjonessvpg/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisjonessvpg/</a></p></li><li><p>SVPG profile: <a href="https://www.svpg.com/team/chris-jones/">https://www.svpg.com/team/chris-jones/</a></p></li></ul><p>–</p><p><strong>Where to find Christian Idiodi:</strong></p><ul><li>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/cidiodi/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/cidiodi/</a></li></ul><p>–</p><p><strong>Where to find SVPG:</strong></p><ul><li><p>SVPG’s newest book, TRANSFORMED: <a href="https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model/">https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model/</a></p></li><li><p>Other books: <a href="https://www.svpg.com/books/">https://www.svpg.com/books/</a></p></li><li><p>Articles: <a href="https://www.svpg.com/articles/">https://www.svpg.com/articles/</a></p></li><li><p>Workshops: <a href="https://www.svpg.com/">https://www.svpg.com/</a></p></li><li><p>Videos: <a href="https://www.svpg.com/videos">https://www.svpg.com/videos</a></p></li></ul><p>–</p><p><strong>Timestamps:</strong></p><p>(1:07) Why do stakeholders matter?</p><p>(3:52) The conflict between product and business</p><p>(6:47) Unpacking a healthy stakeholder relationship</p><p>(10:09) Stakeholders should give you problems, not solutions</p><p>(13:05) Why product has to make the first move</p><p>(17:58) Getting context when stakeholders won&#39;t give it</p><p>(24:42) The three reasons stakeholders resist you</p><p>(27:53) What we get wrong about “empowerment”</p><p>(31:56) Do senior executives need different coaching?</p><p>(37:21) Finance is the stakeholder nobody talks about</p><p>(41:47) Trust starts when teams own the outcome</p><p>(44:23) What dysfunction really looks like</p><p>(50:14) &quot;We&#39;re too big for this&quot; and other excuses</p><p>(53:45) The roadmap trap: predictability vs. discovery</p><p>(56:37) The accountability question everyone&#39;s afraid to ask</p><p>–</p><p><strong>Disclaimer:</strong></p><p>While this podcast is named “Product Therapy”, it is not hosted by licensed therapists or mental health professionals, and it is in no way a substitute for professional mental health services. We recognize the importance of mental well-being and encourage anyone facing person