Question

During a hybrid project, the project manager notices that a senior operations director—whose department will be heavily impacted by the deliverable—consistently attends review meetings but rarely speaks up, offers no feedback, and delegates all decisions to a junior analyst. Other stakeholders are actively engaged. The project manager suspects this director's silent disengagement could create adoption risks later. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Meet with the director one-on-one to understand their concerns, priorities, and preferred way of engaging with the project

Answer

Escalate the director's lack of participation to the project sponsor and request that the sponsor compel attendance and input

Answer

Continue working with the junior analyst since decisions are still being made and the deliverable is progressing on schedule

Answer

Update the stakeholder engagement assessment matrix to reclassify the director as a low-influence stakeholder