365 Days of Stories – Day 19: Navigating Internal Resistance & Earning CEO’s Support
With in-person meeting issues resolved, we tackled another roadblock—getting architects actively involved in development instead of just signing off on designs at the end.
You’ll remember that the customer CEO had frozen our payments, and my super boss had given me veto power to engage anyone within the organization to turn the project around.
Step 1: Architects Aligned, But Another Roadblock Emerged
Even though architects didn’t report to me, I had full control to get them aligned. While there was initial resistance, their willingness to prioritize CEO-driven projects shifted their focus. They started contributing during development, not just in design approval.
🚧 New Roadblock – Process QA Team 🚧
Just when we thought we had momentum, another challenge surfaced. The Process QA team, responsible for enforcing SDLC compliance, wasn’t happy that we were bypassing documentation and approval steps. We weren’t ignoring quality—we were laser-focused on getting projects live ASAP.
I spoke to the Process QA leader, explaining the need for exceptions and parallel execution. He understood but asked for a formal email taking responsibility for these exceptions.
✔ I agreed. ✔ The Process QA team aligned. ✔ We moved forward.
Step 2: The Next CEO Meeting – Make or Break
A month passed. We had made significant progress, but none of the 10-15 high-priority projects had gone live yet. Some were in UAT, others stuck in customer design approvals—problems now on their side.
I knew the upcoming CEO review meeting was critical. This time, all BU leaders would be present. When stakes are high, never sugarcoat issues to the top decision-maker.
The Meeting Begins… We presented our progress transparently—where we made improvements and where projects were stuck. The CEO didn’t just push us—he challenged his own team too. He appreciated our progress, gave us direct access to escalate any issue, instructed everyone to prioritize these projects, and set up fortnightly meetings.
Step 3: The Real Impact – Power & Resistance
With CEO backing, priority alignment, and clear escalation paths, the project was finally on track!
🚧 But success comes with a price. 🚧 Internally and externally, not everyone was happy. Some saw us as problem solvers, but others saw us as troublemakers. Challenging the status quo made enemies.
That’s what I’ll talk about tomorrow—the resistance we faced, both within our company and from the customer’s side.
👉 Have you ever faced backlash for driving change? How did you handle it? Let me know in the comments!
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