Virtual event
How to Manage Stakeholders Who Want Different Things
Exclusively for public servants and policymakers
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2026
Time is displayed in your local time zone
At this event, you’ll learn how to:
- Reconcile different stakeholder expectations
- Move projects forward despite ongoing disagreements
- Handle upward pressure from senior leadership with confidence
Speakers
Your manager wants faster delivery, a partner wants another round of consultation and finance wants the budget reduced. Whose priority comes first? Every public servant knows what it feels like to stand in the middle, pulled in different directions.
At this event, you'll learn how to manage stakeholders who want different things without losing momentum or burning out. Hear how government insiders decide whose input shaped a decision, kept competing groups engaged and moved projects forward.
Public servants who regularly navigate these tensions will share real examples from their work, including how they have challenged senior decisions, managed difficult conversations and built support for a way forward. You'll leave with several approaches you can put to use straight away, whichever direction the pressure is coming from.
Who should join:
Public servants who regularly balance competing stakeholder demands across teams and projects.
Join the Life in Government Community
The Life in Government Community is a collaborative space designed for Apolitical members to connect with peers in the global public service and ask and answer questions on life in government.
This event will take place on Zoom. Joining instructions will be displayed once you register. The event will be recorded and the recording will be sent to all registrants. The recording will also be made available on Apolitical's platform for other members of our community to enjoy. We may also generate insights about our community members by uploading the recording to HeyMarvin, an AI-powered qualitative research tool. If you would prefer not to join the call live, you may view the recording on the platform after the event.
Interested in how Apolitical can support you and your organisation? Learn about collaborating with us.
Image Credit: Unsplash
Speakers
Ella Dorfman
Senior Service Designer, UK Home Office
United Kingdom
Christine Kormann
Director, Stakeholder Relations and Corporate Services Directorate, Publications Office of the European Union
Luxembourg
Samar Qatarneh
Strategic partnership manager, Queen Rania Foundation
Jordan
Ella Dorfman, a Senior Service Designer, working in digital delivery at the UK Home Office. She previously worked at the Government Digital Service, where she collaborated with multiple departments across Whitehall to advance user-centred policy and service design. Prior to joining government, Ella spent six years designing services in the third sector with the national charity Citizens Advice. Ella cares about improving experiences for people who deliver and use public services. Alongside her day-to-day responsibilities she operates as an ILM accredited mediator, helping to resolve workplace conflict and improve stakeholder and colleague relationships.
Samar Qatarneh, the Senior Manager of Local and Regional Partnerships at the Queen Rania Foundation in Jordan. She has more than 20 years of experience building partnerships across government, business, philanthropy and the development sector. At QRF, she has tripled funding since 2016 and increased Jordanian corporate participation in its local portfolio by 70%. Her earlier work spans education research, programme development and scholarships. She holds an MBA from Edinburgh Business School.
