Six tips for disagreeing with senior management
by Harvard Business Review
2016-06-30 18:12:28.0
WHEN you disagree with senior managers, it can be hard to know how to communicate it to them. To convey your opinions respectfully and effectively, you’ll need to plan your moves ahead of time.
Most senior managers are not entirely unapproachable but you probably don’t want to disagree with someone senior every day. Save it for important issues. If you disagree too often, you’ll get a reputation for negativity.
Here are six tips:
1. Don’t blurt out your opinion. Be strategic. Why do you disagree? Could your disagreement be perceived as "political" or do you have the good of the organisation at heart? You’re more likely to be believed if you don’t have anything to gain.
2. Make sure you’re right. Senior people usually have access to more information than the people below them. Is there something you might be missing?
3. Consult trusted peers. If you can’t convince them, you’re probably not going to convince the senior person. Ask for their feedback on how to be persuasive.
4. Prepare a presentation. Avoid hypotheticals, and use data and charts. Keep it businesslike.
5. Ask an expert. Find a respected, credible person with whom you can go over your conclusions. She doesn’t have to be an outside consultant but she should be recognised for her expertise by the senior person.
6. Find a different messenger. People trust their work friends, particularly if they’re at the same level in an organisation. Find someone you know who is the same rank as the senior person you’re trying to convince. Persuade him using the data you put together, then ask him to share that information with his friend.
(Adapted from "6 Ways to Disagree With Senior Management" at HBR.org.)
© 2016 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp
Picture: ISTOCK
WHEN you disagree with senior managers, it can be hard to know how to communicate it to them. To convey your opinions respectfully and effectively, you’ll need to plan your moves ahead of time.
Most senior managers are not entirely unapproachable but you probably don’t want to disagree with someone senior every day. Save it for important issues. If you disagree too often, you’ll get a reputation for negativity.
Here are six tips:
1. Don’t blurt out your opinion. Be strategic. Why do you disagree? Could your disagreement be perceived as "political" or do you have the good of the organisation at heart? You’re more likely to be believed if you don’t have anything to gain.
2. Make sure you’re right. Senior people usually have access to more information than the people below them. Is there something you might be missing?
3. Consult trusted peers. If you can’t convince them, you’re probably not going to convince the senior person. Ask for their feedback on how to be persuasive.
4. Prepare a presentation. Avoid hypotheticals, and use data and charts. Keep it businesslike.
5. Ask an expert. Find a respected, credible person with whom you can go over your conclusions. She doesn’t have to be an outside consultant but she should be recognised for her expertise by the senior person.
6. Find a different messenger. People trust their work friends, particularly if they’re at the same level in an organisation. Find someone you know who is the same rank as the senior person you’re trying to convince. Persuade him using the data you put together, then ask him to share that information with his friend.
(Adapted from "6 Ways to Disagree With Senior Management" at HBR.org.)
© 2016 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp
