Many factors influence how your corporate project will go—both internal and external. One of the most important ones is undoubtedly the project stakeholder. A mysterious figure only seemingly, because we all know it. Of course, it can come in many versions and, depending on the goals of the project, have a different impact on its system. In this article, you will learn who the project’s stakeholders are, what the stakeholder map will enable you to do and how to manage it in the context of the effective implementation of the project. Welcome!
Who are the Project’s Stakeholders?
Project stakeholders are all those people or units who have an impact on the project and are interested in its course. This is the most common definition. In practice, a project stakeholder may also be a person, organization or social group related in any way to the enterprise, which will be interested in the positive or negative results of your company, or on whom your decisions and actions will have a specific impact. The concept first appeared in the 1980s, and its creator was RE Freeman. Today it is trendy in the context of project management and has a significant impact on the final success or business failure.
Division of The Project Stakeholders
Project Stakeholders (Internal and External)
| Internal stakeholders They are part of the team | External Stakeholders They are not part of the team but related in some way to the project |
| Management and management | Suppliers |
| Workers | Customers |
| Shareholders | Media |
| Competition | |
| Authorities | |
| Organizations and institutions |
Project Stakeholders (Primary and Secondary)
| Main stakeholders (crucial for the project) | Secondary stakeholders (of secondary importance to the project) |
| Owners and management | Authorities |
| Management | Media |
| Workers | Organizations and institutions |
| Customers | Public opinion |
| Competition | Local communities |
| Suppliers |
Project Stakeholders (Involved and Interested in The Project)
| Stakeholders involved in the project | Stakeholders interested in the project |
| Project manager | Management |
| Employees implementing the project | Competition |
| Customers | Suppliers |
| Sponsors | Organizations and institutions |
| Local communities | |
| Investors |
Regardless of which breakdown turns out to be closest to your activities, you should find out more about your project stakeholders. This will have a significant impact on the design workflow and its ultimate success or failure. How to conduct a stakeholder analysis?
Project Stakeholders and Their Analysis – In 3 Steps!
Step1 – Identification
The critical element of the stakeholder analysis is, of course, to identify them and create a list of all persons and units that are in any way related to the project and may have a greater or lesser impact on its implementation. Contrary to appearances, it is not such an easy task. Especially since, apart from the list of people, you also need to define their importance, concerns, interests and other factors. You can use one of the several available methods for this. This can be, for example, brainstorming with other members of the project team, creating a mind map, or using various reports or analyses – company or public ones, e.g. on the Internet.
However, focus more on creating the list, because it is in the next step that you will be able to analyse your stakeholders in more detail.
Step2 – Analyses (Stakeholder Map / Stakeholder Matrix)
The best way to analyse the people who can influence the project is a stakeholder map, also known as a stakeholder matrix. What is it about? It is enough to create a table, divided into four areas of influence and placed on the axis. The vertical one will determine the impact of a given person on the project (small or large), while the horizontal one will determine the interest (small or large). The stakeholders who are in the area of high impact / high interest pose the most significant risk in the implementation of the project, and it is they who require the most careful approach. As for other areas:
Stakeholders of high-impact and low-interest should also be essential for you to, but do not constitute a risk to the project, because it is not the object of their particular interest,
These stakeholders with low impact and high interest are the group that is your source of information on the final stage of the project,
stakeholders with low influence and low interest are people who only need to be informed about the state of the project.
The stakeholder map is the basis for creating a persona, i.e. a typical representative of a given group of stakeholders. This will make it easier for you to define your stakeholder management strategy.
Remember! For your project to run smoothly, it is also necessary to create links between the individual stakeholders.
Step3 – Strategy Development and Implementation
When developing a strategy and implementing it, you already know the concepts and can confidently answer any questions. Among others: Who are the stakeholders? What impact do they have on the project? And are the stakeholders interested in the project? Then you can determine how you will keep them happy. Online Payday Loans Texas is also helpful for stakeholders.
What’s more, you can determine what the cooperation with individuals and units will involve. Stakeholder management is about working closely together. It is also about taking care of good relations with them and monitoring the situation. In short – if you want to implement a project without any problems, you must have control over every area on the stakeholder map.
Project stakeholders. Please get to know your project stakeholders and manage them effectively!
This will increase your chances of completing the project and of course achieving your business goal. However, remember that knowledge is also essential in this element—both theoretical and practical. Therefore, training in project management may be the best solution for you.