Stakeholder Engagement: Facilitating Action With Invested Constituents
When people help build the solution, they’re invested in making it work (Stock Image: Squarespace)
Some challenges are like trying to crack open a coconut with a spoon. Tough, messy, and a bit overwhelming. But here’s my secret—cracking those tough nuts becomes a whole lot easier (and more fun!) when you’ve got the right people in the room, each bringing their own perspectives and ideas. This is where stakeholder engagement and facilitation come into play, and believe me, this is where the magic happens. Sure, adding more voices requires collaboration, humility and patience, but trust me, the final product will be so much better.
At their core, stakeholder engagement and facilitation mean bringing diverse voices to the table, really listening to their unique expertise and perspective, and building a human-centered solution that intentionally reflects the needs and ideas of your constituents. Bringing together educators, healthcare professionals, community experts, and other key players isn’t just about getting different opinions – it’s about creating something bigger than the sum of its parts. When it comes to solving complex challenges, there's no single person or solution that holds all the answers.
This is why stakeholder engagement and facilitation are at the heart of my work. When people help build the solution, they’re invested in making it work. Together, we don’t just create plans, policies and programs for people – we create it with them. That’s how we get to the kind of solutions that reflect real-world challenges and have the support of everyone involved because they were part of the process.
From Chaos to Collaboration—Where the Magic Happens
I like to think of stakeholder engagement and facilitation like solving a giant puzzle. At first, it looks impossible—so many scattered pieces that don’t seem to fit. But as we talk, listen, process and start putting the pieces together, a clear picture starts to emerge. Sometimes I call it cat herding, getting everyone to the table to share, listen, process and build. Not everyone likes the cat herding, which is why they hire me. I love the process of engaging the community of experts towards human-centered solutions, in all the messiness, time, patience, grace and energy that it takes.
During the pandemic, I had the privilege of facilitating several Communities of Practices (CoP) to help tackle the unique challenges of building and sustaining COVID-19 testing programs in schools. We knew the why – that regular testing was key to building trust within school communities, but we needed to understand the what and how. These were no ordinary meetings—they were dynamic, ongoing conversations where professionals from different fields came together to share insights, brainstorm solutions, and ultimately, shape strategies that worked in their own contexts. It was like watching a room full of chefs create the perfect recipe, even though each had their own cooking style. Through these sessions, we fostered a safe environment for open discussion, learning, and innovation—key elements for solving the complex, multifaceted issues COVID-19 presented. These were not just meetings or check-ins; they became professionally facilitated forums for real transformation. I encouraged participants to share ideas, struggles, and solutions, and to collaborate on strategies that worked in their contexts, with lessons learned for those in other contexts.
I also had the opportunity to lead stakeholder engagement around and creation of a playbook on Health Care Transition from pediatric to adult care, an essential but often overlooked aspect of healthcare. Over a series of gatherings that included multiple stakeholder organizations and youth representatives, we worked to create an evidence-based toolkit, grounded in the lived experiences of the school nurses, clinicians, administrators, and students who are most impacted. In the end, all of the stakeholders were fully invested in the final product, and I facilitated a webinar to get the word out, which hosted 100+ participants!
Turning Sticky Conversations into Meaningful Change
One thing I’ve learned is that sticky conversations often lead to the best solutions. The trick is embracing the chaos, because the real gold often comes out of those moments of friction. That’s exactly what happened in several of the communities of practice I’ve led in recent years. People came in with different experiences and frustrations, but by fostering an environment where every voice was heard, we turned those sticky conversations into powerful, actionable strategies. Everyone brings their own expertise, and when people feel heard and valued, they become more invested in the outcomes. Whether it’s rethinking how schools approach student belonging and wellbeing or addressing public health interventions, I’ve seen firsthand that the best solutions come from a blend of voices, each contributing to a bigger picture. Through thoughtful facilitation, I aim to lead these diverse groups toward a shared vision. This takes time, and it’s not without challenges, but the end result—policies and practices that reflect the needs and realities of those impacted—makes it all worthwhile.
Why Stakeholder Engagement and Facilitation Matter
Stakeholder engagement isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s a must-have for the best outcome. The same is said for meeting facilitation. Stakeholder engagement is about building a sense of ownership, capacity, and buy-in so that when decisions are made, people don’t just accept them—they believe in them. And that’s the difference between strategies that sit on a shelf and those that actually work.
So, next time you’re facing a tough challenge, don’t go it alone. Bring the right people into the room, hire me to facilitate the collaboration :), lean into the sticky conversations, and watch what happens when collaboration turns into action. Reach out to see how we can collaborate!
