> ... > Intelligence hub Managing stakeholders Influencing

Influencing skills guide

Master how to do influencing right that will help you with your negotiations

What are influencing skills?

Influencing skills are the skills needed to bring people round to your way of thinking. This is done without using force or coercion, whilst always acknowledging their individual opinions.

The importance of influencing skills has increased over the years, with it now being one of the top five soft skills most in demand for procurement and supply chain professionals.

The top five soft skills are:

The top five soft skills are:

1. Supplier relationship management:

Able to develop a collaborative relationship with suppliers that will add value

2. Communication:

Able to communicate and engage with stakeholders and suppliers on all levels

3. Internal stakeholder management:

Able to build a relationship and manage stakeholders through communication and engagement strategies

4. Influencing skills:

At senior levels it’s important to influence upwards to gain buy-in and raise the profile of procurement in the organisation

5. Leadership:

Strong leadership skills to help create a successful team and elevate the profile of procurement

The demands on procurement and supply chain professionals are increasing. Organisations need professionals to lead change from within. If procurement increase their influence, this will help organisations drive growth in an era when it is with a range of global challenges. Procurement and supply professionals have a huge opportunity to influence stakeholders and suppliers across many industries and, more importantly, more digital capability to affect change in their organisations than ever before.

 

What are good influencing skills for negotiation?

Influencing skills are reliant on good soft skills, those skills are seen above. You need to have the ability to communicate effectively and engage stakeholders and refine the art of storytelling.

Storytelling depends on your objective. Are you wanting to spark action and communicate who you are? Or do you want to foster collaboration and share knowledge? Each objective will have a different story.

  • Start with context before content
  • When using data, put it into context
  • Recognise the decision style of each stakeholder which will help frame your approach.
 

What are the best persuasive techniques?

When thinking about being persuasive, you’ll have to apply your soft skills and emotional intelligence to make it work. 

Here are some tips and techniques below to master the art of persuasion.

Active listening skills:

Be open minded and apply active listening skills to understand the other persons point of view.

Credibility:

Increase the perception that you have the credible expertise to deliver the right solutions.

Ethics:

Ensure that you have shared the ethical principles and morals for the proposed outcome.

Rapport and trust:

Build a relationship and prove that you can trusted and follow through on actions.

Do your research:

Make sure you have your research internal and externally and have all the details you need.

Managing stakeholders

Stakeholders play a huge role within the procurement and supply profession. Learn how to identify and manage them successfully. Find out more about Managing Stakeholders

Stakeholder management key themes

Procurement Soft Skills Managing stakeholders
7 principles of influencing Effective Communication Training

Listen on demand and get the latest practical insights from our panel of procurement and supply experts.

CIPS Podcast

Stakeholder management CIPS Webinars - Watch the full stakeholder management playlist here

Become a CIPS member

Achieve your potential by becoming a member today. Whether you want to become a studying member or want to upgrade your membership to MCIPS, you’ll receive support and guidance whatever career level you’re at.
A smiling woman in a dark top stands with her arms crossed, looking away and slightly up. She is framed by two large blue concentric circles and a vibrant blue background with radiating orange-dotted lines.

Access the latest research, whitepapers and tools across a range of key procurement and supply topics.

Stakeholder guide

Engaging with stakeholders and identifying and finding solutions to their needs is critical for procurement's success. This document will enable you to identify stakeholder groups, understand their interests, needs, and drivers.

Behavioural procurement guide

This document looks at the principles of behavioural procurement, incorporating concepts from behavioural science, and outlines how soft skills can enhance procurement performance.

Change management guide

Effective and successful change management requires careful, comprehensive planning and stakeholder engagement. This guide will give you a greater understanding of change management and outline the key steps for success.

Supplier relationship management guide

This article will provide you with a greater understanding of supplier relationship management (SRM), highlight different types of supplier relationships, and outline how to develop and manage them.

Expand your procurement leadership skills

Icon of a person at podium icon on blue background, symbolizing leadership, public speaking, and presentation skills. Set against decorative circular background

Procurement Skills Training

Accelerate your learning and keep your knowledge and expertise up to date with our procurement leadership training courses.

PROCUREMENT LEADERSHIP TRAINING

On this page