Organization

You are a new Project Manager at Innovatech, a competitive tech company where departments guard their resources jealously. You've been put in charge of the high-potential "Greenlight" project, but you have no direct authority. Your success depends entirely on your power to influence. Your assignment is to navigate three key organizational challenges using Cialdini's principles of persuasion. Your first challenge: You need to convince Sarah, the company's brilliant (and notoriously overworked) lead UI designer, to join your project. You spot her alone in the sterile 3rd-floor breakroom, the smell of bitter, burnt coffee hanging in the air. You approach. "Hi Sarah," you say. "Got a minute to talk about the 'Greenlight' project?" She sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose without looking up from her phone. "Look, I'm just swamped. I already told your manager I don't have the bandwidth. And honestly, 'Project Phoenix' is already asking for my time." What do you do?