The role plaid by an internal sponsor in your business is equally important if you are to make any progress improving your business. It is not always easy to get a sponsor that belongs to the so called “right type" for your business. You may encounter some difficulties in finding such individuals as they need to have some unique features that are not so easy to identify or display in their work philosophy. If you want to find sponsor you need to look for somebody who understands the internal politics of your organization, which is quite critical in selecting for a sponsor. Here are some of the unique characteristics of a good sponsor that you need to identify:

•When looking to get a sponsor you need to look for someone to be sitting on the Board of the company or an equally senior level in the organisation;

•Sponsors need to show interest in the success of your initiatives;

•A good sponsor has some maverick qualities as an individual who maintains the status quo is quite unlikely to embrace any new ideas;

•Find sponsor who is open to new initiatives and has the influencing powers to convince others that your project is a worthy investment in time and resources;

•Try to get a sponsor who has a background in your business field, or at least an understanding of the field area;

•The sponsor needs a demonstrated ability to follow-through on new projects to completion. Find sponsor who is proactive or else the project will be lost in the mix of all the other "good" ideas that are never implemented.

Also, you need to think about who this sponsor may be from your organization. Usually, they turn out to be somebody else than your first and most logical choice. When looking to get a sponsor try to think outside the square, and ask yourself questions like:

•Who is feeling the most pain within the team?

•What are the most important issues in the organisation and who are the ones affected?

•Who is the one more interested to implement changes at the moment?

•Who is likely to benefit mostly from the success of the new projects?

•Who has the ability to influence other members and raise the new project profile?

You will definitely come up with people who have different roles than you initially thought. Possible sponsors may be in HR, Marketing, Finance or IT. When thinking to get a sponsor, one of the critical elements is to ensure you do not alienate your immediate superiors or senior managers and make sure that they have the same level of commitment as you do. Try to make them understand your strategy and why you have identified somebody as a sponsor to your project. They may not agree with your original choice of sponsor, but the important aspect is that you and management agree on who this individual should be.

Before organizing a formal meeting with your sponsor, you need to get your immediate superior to "shop" your project with him/her. This is meant to provide your sponsor with a high level understanding of your project and the benefits to be gained. This will help you see what is your sponsor’s opinion about the project and helps you to gain time in case he/she provides immediate negative feedback. Keep in mind that you may need to try other sponsors before preceding with your project.