How to run successful stakeholder, user & content workshops

Workshops are essential at the start of any new client project or relationship. We use them to help us understand your requirements, by getting to know your business and its objectives in a collaborative environment that provokes thought and discussion.

To maximise the benefits of running workshops, they must be considered and well planned; there is no point in running a workshop ‘just for the sake of it’. They can be hard work (but they can also be a lot of fun!)

Workshop types

The three main types of workshops we run regularly are:

Each workshop has a defined objective and purpose, which adds to the overall vision and digital strategy.

Stakeholder workshops

A Stakeholder Workshop can be one of the hardest to arrange, as there are many hurdles to overcome, such as: finding a time to suit everyone’s calendar; defining which are the right staff to attend; the length of time available/required; and finding a mutually convenient venue.

We keep the structure of our workshops flexible, and each one is tailored to suit the client and project’s needs and requirements. Some of the key, high-level topics a Stakeholder Workshop covers include:

To help us gather all this information, we play games that have been designed and perfected over many years, to extract and prioritise the information we need, in a fun and enjoyable way.

1. Hot air balloon

This is a really simple game that I have used across many companies and continents, to identify what users do and don’t like about their current solution, services or product.

I tend to use this when I have lots of workshops to run over a short space of time, with stakeholders from multiple job functions involved.

The Game

Draw a hot air balloon in the middle of a flipchart page. This is a symbol for your solution, service or product.

Working in groups of four to seven people, ask the stakeholders to identify the following:

Ask the stakeholders to add their thoughts to the flipchart on post-it notes, discussing each one as they add them. This initiates a discussion – it’s the commentary around the issues and the consensus across the group that provides the real insight in to the issues and benefits.

Once everyone has added their notes to the page, I find it helps if you then work with the group to categorise and prioritise the information by simply arranging the post-it notes in to groups, or ordering them in terms of priority.

2. Product box

A slightly more complex game that requires the group to be more engaged.

The Game

The interaction here can be invaluable for defining the consensus of problems/solution needed, and can promote insightful discussion. Be prepared to take notes or video the discussion (if delegates are in agreement).

3. SWOT analysis

This is a good exercise for larger groups. If used correctly, it will help you to define the requirements needed to achieve a vision or key business objective. It is important that this outcome is clearly defined at the beginning.

SWOT exercises can require a lot of leading, as many groups find it hard initiate discussion or identify weaknesses. This is where the use of icons and analogies can help to generate the ideas (e.g. strengths = strong arm symbol).

Once you have covered the four sections, I would recommend that you then work with the group to organise and prioritise the ideas. This will highlight the areas within each of the four sections that have the most consensus, and provides the activity themes for going forward.

Who should attend a stakeholder workshop?

The attending delegates should represent all areas of the business, including:

If this is a global organisation, it may be best to complete similar workshops in each of the key locations.

Attitude

Creating the right environment and attitude for the workshop is really important. We work hard at this by using simple, creative introductions to make people feel more comfortable. If a group is large, creating smaller teams of four to six people can help increase each user’s involvement higher.

Creating a workshop that is open and honest can be tricky, as you need to ensure that the quieter delegates don’t get drowned out by any overpowering individuals, or even conflicting areas of a business. In these scenarios, it may be necessary to mix and move people around the teams to ensure a fair representation.

Location

A workshop can be run in any room but, when possible, I like to avoid boardrooms, as it can be a fairly intimidating, formal environment. Sometimes it can help if the workshop is held outside of the business.

Practical considerations include remembering to check that your post-it notes, tape or blue tack don’t mark the walls, as the next budget sign-off might be difficult if they need to re-decorate the room after the workshop!

The room should have space for everyone to get up move around. If you run group exercises, teams will need space to huddle, discuss and collaborate. Try to view the room before the workshop to ensure its suitability.

At DEPT®, we have a number of rooms set-up for workshops, with dry-wipe walls and surfaces which are great for idea-storming.

Equipment

The basic equipment you need for a workshop is very simple!

User workshops

Although User Workshops can include the same over-arching game objectives as the Stakeholder Workshops, there are a few differences to consider:

Factors to consider

About the user

The user and their internet usage

Content workshops

These are normally delivered during the project to:

What are the benefits

A well-run workshop, or series of workshops, will provide a plethora of benefits. Not only do they strengthen the agency and client’s knowledge and relationship, but can also provide many benefits internally within an organisation.

Agency benefits

Form an external perspective, it’s important that our teams are aligned and quickly working towards your goals and business objectives. Workshops are key to the initial relationship development, and create a platform for communication that results in immediate project benefits.

Workshops help an agency:

Client benefits

Workshops are not just about the project briefing and agency relationship. We have run many workshops across a wide variety of projects and client relationships, and the benefits within the clients’ internal environment can be huge.

Many of the projects we deliver are transformational for the business; workshops can provide the following internal business benefits:

Workshops can work wonders

We’ve run countless successful workshops, and find them paramount to project scoping and solution building. Stakeholder engagement, user input and effective content planning are invaluable when embarking on a project. Workshops deserve thought, time and careful planning. Do that, and the benefits will speak for themselves.