Influencing and Persuading Training in Greece

Influencing and persuading others are essential capabilities in today's workplace. Professionals are increasingly expected to lead initiatives, shape decisions, gain commitment, and work effectively across organisational boundaries, often without having direct authority over the people involved.

A strong idea alone does not always create action. Even worthwhile proposals can lose momentum when stakeholder priorities are misunderstood, resistance is overlooked, or the message is presented in a way that fails to connect with its audience.

This two-day practical workshop provides participants with a structured approach to influencing in real workplace situations. Through behavioural insights, discussion, realistic scenarios, and hands-on activities, learners explore how to understand stakeholders, recognise sources of resistance, build trust, and select suitable influence tactics.

Participants also practise creating messages that connect with different audiences through framing, tone, and storytelling. The course goes beyond gaining agreement by examining how effective follow-up can reduce friction and turn commitment into action.

By the end of the programme, each participant develops a personalised Influence Impact Plan based on a current or upcoming workplace challenge.

There are no formal prerequisites for attending this course.

Participants will gain the greatest benefit by approaching the programme with an open mindset and a willingness to contribute to discussions, scenarios, and interactive exercises.

This course is particularly suitable for:

• Professionals working across teams and departments,
• Individuals who need to influence without formal authority,
• People leading projects or business initiatives,
• Professionals seeking stakeholder support for decisions or proposals,
• Individuals who want to strengthen their stakeholder management capabilities,
• Managers and team members looking to become more confident and adaptable influencers.

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Explain the key factors that shape influence without formal authority,
• Analyse stakeholder needs, pressures, relationships, and priorities,
• Adapt an influencing approach for different stakeholders,
• Recognise common triggers that create resistance,
• Use communication techniques to reduce defensiveness and resistance,
• Select suitable influence tactics based on trust and risk,
• Create stronger messages using framing, tone, and storytelling,
• Design follow-up actions that make commitment and execution easier,
• Evaluate unsuccessful influence attempts and revise their approach using MOVE,
• Develop a personal influence plan for a current or upcoming workplace challenge.

Module 1: Ignite Your Influence

Explore what makes influencing without authority challenging and identify the factors that affect whether ideas gain support.

• Understanding Influence and Persuasion
• Influencing without formal authority
• Why some ideas gain support while others lose momentum
• Factors that strengthen or weaken workplace influence
• Exploring your personal influence approach
• Identifying strengths and development opportunities

Module 2: Map Their World

Develop a clearer picture of the people whose support matters by looking beyond organisational roles to their priorities and circumstances.

• Stakeholder Mapping
• Identifying key stakeholders
• Analysing stakeholder relationships
• Understanding needs and priorities
• Recognising stakeholder pressures
• Identifying where influence matters most
• Making ideas relevant from the stakeholder's perspective

Module 3: Lower the Barriers

Explore the causes of resistance and practise approaches that encourage more open and constructive conversations.

• Understanding sources of Resistance
• Recognising resistance triggers
• Exploring defensive responses
• Reframing techniques
• Adjusting language to reduce resistance
• Reducing tension in difficult conversations
• Creating constructive dialogue
• Applying techniques through realistic scenarios

Module 4: Play the Right Card

Examine a range of influence tactics and learn how to select an approach that fits the stakeholder and situation.

• Introduction to Influence Tactics
• Strengths of different influencing approaches
• Understanding Trust and Risk dynamics
• Matching tactics to different situations
• Adapting approaches for different stakeholders
• Ethical influencing and persuasion
• Applying influence tactics to workplace scenarios

Module 5: Make Messages Land

Develop messages that are clear, relevant, memorable, and more likely to engage the intended audience.

• Simplifying the core message
• Using Framing effectively
• Applying Tone appropriately
• Using Storytelling to create impact
• Tailoring messages to stakeholder needs
• Creating concise and memorable communication
• Testing and improving messages through peer feedback

Module 6: Smooth the Path to Yes

Explore why agreement does not always result in action and identify ways to make follow-through easier.

• Understanding the gap between Agreement and Action
• Recognising barriers to Follow-Through
• Identifying points of friction
• Making desired actions easier to complete
• Establishing clear next steps
• Designing effective follow-up
• Creating and maintaining momentum

Module 7: Turn “No” into Know-How

Use difficult or unsuccessful influence experiences as a source of information for improving future approaches.

• Reviewing challenging influence attempts
• Diagnosing what did not work
• Reassessing stakeholder responses
• Applying the MOVE approach
• Revising the influence strategy
• Re-opening dialogue
• Learning from unsuccessful outcomes
• Building resilience as an influencer

Module 8: Influence with Impact

Bring the techniques from the programme together and apply them to a realistic workplace challenge.

• Working with a real workplace challenge
• Applying stakeholder analysis
• Identifying likely resistance
• Selecting suitable influence tactics
• Developing a compelling message
• Planning the follow-up approach
• Completing a final influence simulation
• Receiving feedback and refining the approach
• Creating a personal Influence Impact Plan