I hope that you have enjoyed the article, “How To ‘Sell’ Procurement To Stakeholders.”

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In that article, I wrote that telling “stories” is one of the timeless persuasion principles you can use in selling procurement.  I also gave nine examples of successes that you can use as the basis for your stories.

Here, I’ll address how to get the most mileage out of those stories.  There’s a technique that is most often associated with succeeding in job interviews:  the STAR technique.

The STAR technique provides a syntax for responding to behavioral interview questions in a way that enables you to paint a complete and convincing picture of how well you performed a job responsibility or completed a project in your past.  This same syntax can be used for your procurement stories.

STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result.

  • The Situation provides context for the work you had to do
  • The Task describes the goal you had to accomplish
  • The Action describes the specific things you did to work towards the goal
  • The Result is the outcome of your work, often a measurable improvement or at least an accomplishment of the goal within the timeframe expected

So, here’s a challenge for you.  First, think of a project where your work benefited a stakeholder – feel free to use one of the nine types of stories from the article if it applies to you.  Second, think of the Situation, Task, Action, and Result for the work you did.

As simple as that, you’re prepared to win over another stakeholder.  See, selling procurement isn’t as hard as you thought, is it?

Categories: Procurement

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Published On: August 4th, 2015Comments Off on “Selling” Procurement? The STAR Technique Works Here, Too!

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