If you have read my book or been to our class you know that I have more P words than any other letter. I chose Personal Agendas because these are powerful but invisible requirements that impact deals and you may never know it.
Personal Agendas are outcomes that a stakeholder wants out of a project or initiative that benefits them. It may be good for the organization; it may not. These hidden needs won't come out in a discovery session with anyone else around. They are personal and political. You have to build a strong enough relationship in order for a prospect to share them with you. You may have to ask about them when you have the prospect alone at lunch or outside the office.
Every stakeholder has personal agendas and they don't appear in an RFP. It may be a promotion, obviously. It could be for recognition that they brought in a hit solution. It may be job security by getting experience with your product on their resume. It may be for more leisure time. It may be an issue outside work. It may also be illegal in the case of a kickback.
"What does this deal mean to you, personally? What would success look like to you in this project? What's next for you?" are some of the questions you might ask. If you are too familiar too fast (which differs in parts of the world) you could be considered too nosy. But if you ignore these personal agendas, you do so at your own peril.
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