1.Not everyone needs to agree

If you want to get anything done in a CPQ Project you can’t try to please everyone.

If you wait until every Person or Team had a chance to follow up with everyone that might have some interest in the outcome of a decision we will drag down enthusiasm, accountability and the general agility of an organization. This price is too high from my point of view. If you have done your homework and you are clear about your business requirements and priorities then you can make faster decisions even if you encounter opposition. In some cases it will be the wrong decision and that is OK as long as it is a learning experience that will ensure that the next decision is better. Inaction as a consequence of Indecisiveness is not an option. Gather all the information and input you can get in a “fixed amount of time” and decide with the Key Stakeholders what to do next. Don’t look for everyone’s approval.

Note:  Make sure you keep a strong and committed team by trying to prevent these situations. Nevertheless these situations will arise from time to time. When they do, accept that you can’t please everyone.

2.Listen effectively

In order to learn anything we have to listen. Naturally we seem to have the ability to do that since we listen to our parents and others from early childhood on. We do it unconsciously but we do it and that is how we learn to speak. As we get older it seems to get harder to listen. We are more focused on our own interests and less on what others want. The interesting and sad thing is that the more we focus on ourselves the less we will achieve with others.So listen really means that you have to stop thinking about yourself, put all your thoughts and interests aside for a moment and focus on the other person 100%! That is hard to do if you don’t have a real interest for CPQ or other people. Listen, learn and evolve!

3.Ask meaningful questions

Have you ever noticed that we sometimes stop asking questions because we believe we know the answer anyway? If that happens I consider it a warning sign because in a good, open and honest relationship between people or teams it should be possible to ask questions and ask them more than once. Instead of asking the same questions three times in a row we may be more successful if we reframe or rephrase our questions. How about refining our question strategy with better or more open ended questions before we ask again? In some cases we might have to do more data analysis before we ask questions. Sometimes it can help to ask a question in a group instead of in a one on one situation. Or how about asking through someone else? In many cases there is an option to get a different outcome. Think about it, put some work into it and only ask again when you’re ready and can expect a different outcome.

4.Show what you stand for

Do you dare to tell people what you are standing for? It seems to me that a good number of people do not want to openly say what they stand for or where they stand on certain issues. This makes it challenging for your team/organization to make real progress. Maybe it’s because you don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings, maybe it’s because you want to wait for someone else to voice their opinion to make sure you’re not walking into a political minefield. Whatever the reason is for this behavior, for business purposes, I think we have to overcome it in order make progress. When we take a stand for our convictions we have to keep in mind that we respect other opinions. Standing respectfully for your convictions, without reverting to defensive or aggressive behavior, is an art. If it’s done correctly it will allow an open and constructive discussion.

In addition to respect we have to stay open to adjust our convictions if we’re confronted with better arguments. The challenge I see, if convictions can’t be expressed adequately in business situations, is that it is very challenging to have a meaningful discussion about business issues. As long as it is not clear to others where we stand and why we stand there it is very hard to start a meaningful discussion. Make your team/organization move forward and have an opinion that can be adjusted.