Influence without authority

Influencing without authority. That's what we're going be talking about today on how to lead the podcast for CEOs, founders, and leaders who want to find the perfect balance of authority and empathy. My name's Kate Waterfall Hill, and I'll be sharing more ideas from over 30 years of working in business and leadership development.

Before we kick off, don't forget to check out my book, ‘how to Lead’, my group coaching programme and my one-to-one coaching services at www.waterfallhill.co uk. Places are strictly limited each month and do sell out, so book now for yourself or your team.

So let's talk about influence, specifically influence without formal authority. It's something I've helped teams navigate time and time again, particularly in matrix organizations, cross-functional projects or growing businesses where influence can't be enforced.

Let's start with Linda, the bad manager, my alter ego on social media and see how she tries to get buy-in from people she doesn't have control over.

“People always ask me, Linda, how do you influence without authority? And I say, it's simple. You just need to understand people and then relentlessly exploit that. Yeah. So step one is volume. I mean, not everybody responds to logic, but most people respond to being shouted at relentlessly. Step two, confusion.

If you change your position mid meeting, then people are bit confused, but it also creates some influence. Because at least they're wondering what on the earth's going on. And then step three of all else fails. You go over their heads, go to the boss. Yes. Well, I've got a private line into William and I position things as a concern.

I mention morale and optics. Yes, he loves talking about optics. And then if that doesn't work and I cry a little bit, and that usually softens him up to see my point of view works every time like a charm. Influence is all about relationships and the ability to make everyone feel slightly nervous about what you might do next.”

So Linda there throwing her weight about as usual, She thinks she might be able to influence the outcomes. That's one way to do it. But perhaps we could look now at some ways that actually work. First of all, what is influencing without authority?

This is where you have the ability to shape decisions, change minds, and get things done even when you're not in charge. it's not about manipulation or charm, offensives, it's about clarity, credibility, and connection. When you can do this well, you can often stop feeling quite so stuck. You stop escalating every disagreement upwards.

You become someone who people want to work with, even if they don't report to you. And that's what this episode of How to Lead is all about.

It might help if we had a look at why it's sometimes so hard. So when I run influencing workshops, I ask participants to describe the situations they're in before I actually develop the workshop detail itself. And often the responses are things like they find themselves repeating recommendations that go ignored.

They struggle with pushback or resistance. They're looking for ways to manage across teams with competing priorities and sometimes they have the data and the expertise, but they're still not being heard. If this sounds familiar, there's often a gap between what we know is right and what actually gets implemented.

And the difference between one and the other could be called the influence gap. Bridging, it takes more than good ideas. It takes a game plan.

Here's a quick summary of part one of my Influence Game Plan, It's all about building credibility, creating positive relationships, but also crucially working out the timing. Let's start with the foundations of influence, what you might call a strategy stack.

Credibility. It's what makes people take you seriously, even when you're not the boss, and it's built on four things, technical expertise. You really need to know your stuff and stay current.

Having a track record, so having up your sleeve some evidence of previous experience in this area, reputation, doing what you say you're going to do and how you show up in every interaction and presentation. How you communicate and carry yourself. So it's about technical expertise, having a good track record, building a reputation, and how you come across.

So start with evidence, not opinion. So rather than just saying, oh, I just think that this is a good idea, try, here's what we've seen from the last three launches we've done. it shows that you're speaking from experience and then subtly reinforce your track record.

Things like when we ran this approach with Product X, it delivered Y. It's both helpful and persuasive.

The second element of part one of the game plan is relationships because people don't follow ideas. They follow people. If you only talk to colleagues when you need something, your influence is going to be limited. So you need to build a strong, wide network before you need it. People who trust you, understand your intentions and believe you'll follow through, are more likely to support you when you need them to.

So build before you need it. Know what people care about and offer help, not just requests. Don't always be the person that's needing something. Offer something too.

So a top tip here might be to think about one stakeholder that you really would like to get more buy-in from. What's one small action you could take this week to build that relationship?

Then the third part of part one of the game plan is timing. Even the best message can fall flat if the timing is off. So just think about the other person for a minute. Are they stressed? Distracted or on a deadline? Maybe it's not the best moment to try to trap them in the corridor on the way to get some lunch.

Is there a restructure happening? Are there budget cuts? Has a new leader just arrived that all matters and will shape how your message is received. So a top tip might be, wait for a bit. If the moment feels off, catch them informally first perhaps, and just test the idea and then align with their agenda.

I know you're focusing on X this quarter. Here's how my idea supports that.

And then part two of the Influence Game Plan is all about framing, listening, and presenting. So once the foundations are in place from part one, then it's time to lead the conversation. So first of all, frame it well. Before you pitch anything, you need to frame it in a way that speaks to the other person's priorities.

Align your idea to maybe a business goal or an organizational objective. Speak in their language. What do they care about? Are they all about the data, about the money, about the people, about the longer-term outcomes? Think about it from their perspective and what they would like to hear and then lead with the outcome, not the process.

So instead of, I want to run a pilot for a new workflow, try this pilot could reduce time to launch by 20%. Can I show you how.

Another essential part of influencing, and actually it's a great part of leadership as well, is making sure you are listening and aligning. So most people think that influence is about what you say, but actually sometimes it's about how well you listen. Give space. Don't rush to respond. So if somebody meets you with a, no, rather than jumping in to try to defend yourself or reiterate your point, explore that, ask clarifying questions.

What would success look like here for you? Or What information do you have that maybe I don't, that leads you to that conclusion and then be upfront about it.

Name your concerns, say, I know resourcing is tight, so I factored that in. So, top tip here would be to find shared goals. We both want this project to land well, let's look at the best way to get there.

The third part is presenting with clarity. Once you've listened and aligned, it's time to make your case. Really try not to waffle. So you can use this four point method, which I borrowed from the great Vanessa Cuddeford, who's an ex TV anchor and now is a presentation skills coach?

The framework for this is prep, PREP, the first P is point. Lead with your core message or recommendation and be really clear and direct. Don't build up to it. Just say it. I believe we should prioritize user testing in this phase. For instance, the R of prep is reason, so back it up with a short logical reason.

This shows your thinking, And it helps your audience understand why it matters. So you might then go on to say something like, because we've had three customer complaints about usability this quarter. Then the E is example. Bring it to life with a relevant example, case study or scenario concrete examples, build credibility and make the idea stick.

So you might say something like, last month we ran a similar test on Product X and uncovered a major issue before launch. And then the last P is making your point again. So restating your original point, albeit briefly, just to tie it all together and drive it home. that's why I'm recommending we run user testing Now before we move onto the build stage.

Keep it all clear. Keep it confident. Don't try and build up to your point. Lead with it and end with it.

Now let's talk about handling resistance, because often when you're trying to influence without formal authority, you can expect some pushback. That's normal. The goal is to respond with curiosity, not defensiveness. So here are some techniques that I use in the workshop that I run.

Respectful candour, things like, can I offer a different view on this? Be really upfront that you're challenging them, but respectfully next is the contrast method. So I agree with your aim and I have a concern about the timing.

The curiosity approach is help me understand how you got to that conclusion. That's one I really like actually, because it sometimes can uncover things that you hadn't thought of. Then there's the solution bridge. What have we combined elements of both approaches. These keep the door open. They model emotional intelligence and they make it easier to keep the relationship intact even when you disagree.

As well as all the other things I've covered, language also matters because words matter. Here's how to shift from pushy to persuasive. So instead of saying something like, you should or you are wrong, or we must. Try. What if we, or have you considered, or could we explore this kind of language, reduces defensiveness, signals respect, and invites collaboration.

A top tip here, if someone's tone gets sharp, lower yours. Power plus warmth beats volume every time.

Here's an example from somebody I worked with. She was in charge of improving a cross-functional process that nobody particularly wanted to fix. She wasn't quite senior enough to mandate anything, and every department had its own priorities. She started by mapping her network. Where did she have strong allies?

Where were the blockers? Then she met with each stakeholder, not to pitch, but to listen. She asked questions like, what frustrates you the most about this process? What would make your job easier? I. And then she took that input, reframed her proposal, not as a change to standardize the process, which is a bit yawn inducing, but as a way to reduce rework, missed deadlines, and Monday morning stress.

She also went on to use prep PREP to present her idea, connected it to business metrics, and landed the pilot with zero escalation. That's the power of influence. Doesn't need to have hierarchy, doesn't need to have drama.

So to bring this all together, some final tools, the three Rs, if you remember nothing else from this episode, please take this with you. The three R's, start with respect, acknowledging others' expertise, and be curious, not competitive. Secondly relationships. Build them consistently, not just transactionally.

Help others win too.

And results show your impact and follow through. So these are your long game tools. They don't get you a yesterday, but they will build influence that lasts. So in summary then, here's your influence toolkit. Close the influence gap with credibility, relationships, and timing. Lead with shared purpose.

Listen first, speak second. Use prep to get your point across. Frame disagreement as collaboration.

Choose your words carefully and build in the three Rs every week. Influence without authority isn't about being pushy, loud, or political. It's about being clear, helpful, and trusted This was a bit of a whistle stop tour of influencing without authority. I cover this in a lot more detail in my workshops and in my coaching programs, so if you'd like to know more, please do get in touch.

That's all for today's episode of How to Lead. Until next time, keep leading with Clarity, care, and Curiosity. If you've enjoyed this episode, I'd love it if you followed for more leadership insights. And if you'd like my personal support, take a look at my website, waterfall hill.co.uk where you'll find more information about my one-to-one coaching

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The best leaders are clear on the vision, care about their people, and approach interactions with curiosity, not judgment.

Until next time, thanks for listening.