What do you do if your relationships with stakeholders in Energy Engineering are strained?

If there's a history of missed deadlines or misunderstandings, address them directly in a meeting or through a formal communication channel. Admitting shortcomings and expressing a willingness to improve fosters trust and demonstrates accountability. Seek feedback from stakeholders to gain insights into their concerns and perspectives. By acknowledging the issues, you lay the groundwork for constructive dialogue and collaborative problem-solving, which can ultimately lead to stronger relationships and more successful outcomes in Energy Engineering projects.

Acknowledge the issues and find the root cause of the issues; analyzing and assessing them. Ensure all the concerned and affected parties are on board before seeking a solution with all parties being engaged in finding a solution. A record of all issues and agreed solutions is signed with a schedule for reports, review and feedback; while tracking progress towards final extinction and resolution of all issues.

It is important to seek to review gray areas in SLAs and contract agreement as part of engagement in order to permanently straighten out relations for the longer term.

Address past issues openly, showing commitment to resolution. Keep stakeholders informed of project updates and challenges. Deliver consistently and seek feedback for improvement. Fostering trust and accountability builds confidence and promotes effective collaboration, repairing strained relationships in Energy Engineering projects.

When you're ready to implement solutions, collaborate closely with stakeholders to address their concerns, which might include adjusting project plans or improving communication strategies. Based on my experience, involving stakeholders in developing solutions helps ensure their input is valued and integrated, which can enhance trust and commitment to the project's success. One thing I've found helpful is to regularly update stakeholders on the progress of the implemented solutions and solicit their feedback. This ongoing dialogue helps reinforce the partnership and fosters a shared commitment to future projects.

All the above are valuable behaviours. Also with the rapid change taking place there is a great deal of disinformation in this market. We also need to show leadership by challenging attitudes based on disinformation (eg. “heat pumps don’t work” or “renewables are expensive”) and explainhow climate change objectives align with financial and economic objectives.