You've faced a major roadmap setback. How can you rebuild trust with stakeholders?

Start with transparency. Clearly communicate what went wrong and why. Share a revised plan with realistic timelines and specific steps to address the issues. Take ownership of the mistakes and outline the measures you're taking to prevent them from happening again. Engage stakeholders regularly with updates and progress reports to show accountability and commitment to the new plan. By being honest, proactive, and solution-focused, you can gradually restore confidence and demonstrate your reliability.

Honesty, is the key explain what went wrong openly to the stakeholders and clearly demonstrate the actions taken to avoid it , this will make the stakeholders have more confidence in you . Its not the failure its how you handle the failure that makes an impact

Acknowledge the setback openly and take responsibility for any mistakes or missteps. Express understanding of the impact the setback has on stakeholders and validate their concerns.

Setbacks happen. The best way to show you're the right person for the job and to rebuild trust is by the way that the setback is handled: ▶️Acknowledge Setback: Once you have processed the issue, I'd suggest coming up with a resolution/plan to mitigate. Don't report the setbacks to the stakeholders (if possible) without having a plan to solve it (even on a napkin). Don't focus whose fault it is. Get to work. ▶️Share Plan, Report, Garner Support: Present a detailed remedial plan to stakeholders. Show the impact, action items, steps and revised timelines. Seek input and feedback from stakeholders and give regular updates. ▶️Retrospective: Once the roadmap has been steadied, have a retrospective meeting to understand how things feel apart.

I can add something here - When we hit a roadblock in our plan, it's important to rebuild trust with stakeholders first and foremost . Start by being honest & open about the setback. Explain what happened and why. Then comes creating a new plan with clear timelines & realistic goals. We should highly be focusing on finding solutions to the problem & ensure to keep stakeholders updated regularly. If you trust this consistent communication helps build trust faster than anything. Finally my cent is to make sure to deliver on your new plan. Achieving these milestones will show stakeholders that we are reliable and committed to getting back on track & create stickiness .

Actively involve stakeholders in the recovery process. Seek their input and feedback on the revised plans to ensure alignment and address any concerns they might have. Their involvement can increase buy-in and help mitigate frustration associated with the changes.

Establish a system for regularly updating stakeholders on the progress being made on the new plan. Transparency in communicating both advancements and ongoing challenges helps maintain trust and demonstrates your commitment to meeting the revised objectives.

Regardless of the situation, it is crucial that stakeholders are always aligned with the planned action steps. Clearly communicate where the product stands and where you aim to go. To instill confidence and demonstrate proper planning, establish goals and continuously monitor them. This ensures you are steering the ship in the right direction, and if not, you can take swift action to realign with the objectives. Establish the next deliverables, outline the roadmap, and define success metrics like activation, conversion, and feature usage rates. Present the action plans and expected outcomes; this transparency is the foundation for reestablishing stakeholder trust and ensuring confidence in the project’s direction and progress.

Be prepared to adjust your recovery plan based on feedback and changing circumstances. Implement iterative improvements to ensure steady progress and prevent future setbacks.

Great product leaders have a knack for bouncing back from setbacks and developing creative Plan Bs on the fly! It's important to introduce agile solutions and ideas that address the setback and still align with goals. Moreover, it's necessary to include stakeholders in this process, so that everyone understands what's happening and is aligned with the new goals.