Effective Stakeholder Management and Leadership in Emergency Management

Effective Stakeholder Management & Leadership in Emergency Management Projects This podcast episode features Adam Suktkus, an instructor at the National Disaster and Emergency Management University and adjunct lecturer at the College of Emergency Preparedness Homeland Security, & Cybersecurity at the State University of New York at Albany. Adam discusses his extensive experience in emergency management, including his roles at CalOES and as a trainer with FEMA. The conversation covers key strategies for managing communication with stakeholders in high-pressure situations, handling schedule and budget constraints, effective leadership without direct authority, and dealing with power dynamics. Adam also shares insights on the importance of flexibility and resilience in a field characterized by complexity and uncertainty. 00:00 Introduction to Adam Sutkus 00:57 Effective Stakeholder Management in Emergency Projects 06:37 Strategies for Handling Power Dynamics 11:33 Navigating Project Challenges and Scope Creep 16:08 Leadership in Emergency Management 22:43 Preparing Future Emergency Managers 26:06 Conclusion and Final Thoughts About Adam Sutkus is NDEMU (EMI)/FEMA Instructor, and is also an Adjunct Lecturer, State University of NY at Albany, College of Emergency Preparedness Homeland Security, & Cybersecurity. He worked with both California State Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) and and the California State University system and five years with the federal government at U.S. EPA. In 2020 he retired from the State of California Specialized Training Unit (CSTU) as an Instructor/Trainer. Sutkus, Adam, University at Albany, State University of New York. CALIFORNIA'S AREA CONTINGENCY PLANS: A SUCCESSFUL STATE/FEDERAL PARTNERSHIP, February 1995; International Oil Spill Conference Proceedings 1995(1):924-925 DOI: 10.7901/2169-3358-1995-1-924

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Effective Stakeholder Management and Leadership in Emergency Management is an episode from Dancing with the Black Elephant by Andrew Boyarsky.

This episode is 28:32 long.

This episode was published on Jan 20, 2026.

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