Establish credibility with the right audience

A Brazilian adviser briefs a multinational steering committee.

Listen, then read again. What does the speaker need to communicate?

The steering committee has heard several confident presentations about a stalled transformation programme. What it lacks is a shared explanation of why previous commitments have not translated into delivery. The new adviser could establish authority by listing qualifications, but she chooses to demonstrate how she will reason about the problem. She distinguishes three questions that have been conflated: whether the proposed solution is technically sound, whether the organisation can implement it and whether the expected benefit justifies the transition cost. Each requires different evidence and different decision-makers. A favourable answer to one does not settle the others. The adviser then describes a comparable assignment while making its limits explicit. The earlier organisation had fewer regulatory constraints, so its results should not be treated as a forecast for this programme. She offers a disciplined review of assumptions and dependencies, rather than a guaranteed turnaround. Her opening ends with a request for access to the people who own the implementation risks, including those whose assessment may challenge the preferred narrative. Credibility rests on transparent judgment and relevant evidence. The adviser presents uncertainty as something to investigate and govern, while still accepting responsibility for producing a usable recommendation.

Original fictional teaching case · Home Office English