How to Identify Project Stakeholders in Project Management

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At the onset of the project, it is important to identify the formal authority for the project in the form of a Project Charter. That means we need to identify the Project Stakeholders. Identifying project stakeholders at the very beginning of the project is critical to project success. This process is carried out before the end-to-end planning stage of the project. It is a two-stage process carried out when the stakeholders are not content. If a step intended to satisfy the stakeholders is not serving its purpose, we can call it anything but project success. The following steps are mandatory to keep a project running successfully-

1. Identifying the stakeholders
2. Inspect each Stakeholder's relationship with the project to establish their level of interest in the project.

Anyone and everyone can be a stakeholder. It includes the people whose business interests are impacted by the project, who can dominate or steer the project, or who have more expectations from the project. A stakeholder is not necessarily a sponsor or board member. He or she can also be a team member or a project manager. Every single member associated with the project can be a stakeholder.

So you can identify the stakeholders by the source of information on the Stakeholders (Input), working on that information (using the tools), and on the outcome.

Who Are Project Stakeholders? 

Project stakeholders are individuals or organizations affected by or impacting the outcome of a project. The project sponsor, project manager, team members, customers, end-users, stakeholders, suppliers, partners, and regulatory bodies can be included. 

Project stakeholders are a diverse group of internal or external individuals and organizations with a vested interest in the project. These entities may be employees, customers, partners, suppliers, shareholders, government agencies, and the wider community.  

Each stakeholder group may have specific project needs, objectives, and expectations. The project manager must identify, understand, and manage these relationships effectively. Effective stakeholder management requires regular communication, active engagement, and collaboration. It aligns all stakeholders with the project goals and ensures the project lifecycle meets their needs. 

Why Are Project Stakeholders Important? 

Project stakeholders can play a crucial role in determining the success or failure of a project. They have different interests, expectations, and levels of influence and involvement in the project. 

For example, the project sponsor may provide funding and support, while the customer may define the expectations for the project. Team members may contribute their skills and expertise to the project, while end-users may use the final product. The project manager must communicate effectively with all stakeholders, involve them in decision-making, and manage their expectations throughout the project lifecycle. 

Project stakeholders are important for the following reasons: 

1. Project Funding: Stakeholders, such as the sponsor, can fund the project. 
2. Requirements Definition: Customers and end-users can define the requirements and expectations for the project outcome. 
3. Resources and Support: Stakeholders, such as team members, can provide resources and support to complete the project. 
4. Decision Making: Stakeholders can influence decision-making and provide valuable input to the project manager. 
5. Project Success: Stakeholder satisfaction is an important factor in determining the success of a project. 
6. Risk Management: Stakeholders can identify potential risks and help the project manager mitigate them. 
7. Continuity and Sustainability: Stakeholders can provide ongoing support for the project and ensure its continuity and sustainability. 

Stakeholder Input 

• Project Charter– It not only refers to the documents specifying the rights of the Project Manager but also provides a list of the key Stakeholders (comprised of the Sponsor, Senior Management, or Consulting Management).
• Procurement Documents: In addition to the Charter, the Procurement Document is a great source for the third-party stakeholders falling lower in the hierarchy.
• Enterprise Environmental Factors– EEF indicates how the organization's rules and regulations, human resources, structure, etc., affect the project. One of the factors can be input to identify the key stakeholders, which gives us insight into who has the power to influence the project.
• Organizational Process Assets– OPA is the repository that keeps the information about the past project, improvements from past projects, procedures, policies, and standards in an assembled manner to act as a reference for future projects.

Stakeholder's Tools and Techniques

• Stakeholder Analysis– It consists of analyzing the information from the input of identifying Stakeholders, which will assist us in selecting the Stakeholder who can influence the project positively. So we can start recording the role of an individual, their point of interest, and their influence level against the list of all stakeholders.

It would be best if you examined the expectations and interests of all stakeholders in detail. This may help identify more stakeholders. In addition to that, we can handle all the stakeholders’ concerns and make plans to address them. That is one good way we can convert negative stakeholders to positive ones. Once we have the relevant details, we can use those to classify the stakeholders depending on their interests, influence, support, and power.

We can use tools like Resistor, Neutral, and Advocate to categorize Stakeholders:

• The resistor is a negative stakeholder who is not supporting the project.
• Neutral Stakeholder does not support the project. In this case, the project manager tries to convert their interests positively.
• An advocate is a stakeholder who completely supports the project and provides ideas to overcome any barriers,

Stakeholder's Output

Stakeholder Register- All the information accumulated in stakeholder analysis helps us create a Stakeholder Register. A register comprises all the information in tabular form, whose size depends on the project size. The project manager's duty must identify the potential stakeholders and note them down in the table to ensure project success. The project Stakeholder Register is depicted below:

Stakeholder Management Strategy– A stakeholder management strategy is formulated to plan the actions for the entire project management course. This strategy is made to minimize the negative influences on the project. As per PMBOK 5th Edition, the Stakeholder management strategy document includes the following:

• Key Stakeholder’s impact on the project
• Stakeholders’ level of participation as per stakeholder analysis
• Groups designated to each Stakeholder
• Assessment of Impact
• A potential strategy for gathering Support
• Collecting sources of information on the Stakeholder as input and working on that data using tools can help us find the positive Stakeholder to enhance project success.

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Tips for Managing Project Stakeholders 

• Identify And Understand Stakeholder Needs: It is important to understand each stakeholder's interests, expectations, and level of influence and involvement in the project. 
• Communicate Regularly: Establish clear and open lines of communication with stakeholders and keep them informed of project progress and changes. 
• Involve Stakeholders in Decision-Making: Encourage active participation and input from stakeholders, and involve them in key decisions that affect the project. 
• Manage Expectations: Ensure stakeholders understand the project goals, objectives, and constraints and that their expectations are realistic and manageable. 
• Foster Relationships: Building and maintaining positive relationships with stakeholders can lead to more effective communication, collaboration, and support. 
• Resolve Conflicts: Address any conflicts between stakeholders promptly and effectively to prevent them from impacting the project. 
• Monitor Stakeholder Satisfaction: Regularly assess stakeholder satisfaction and take action to address any issues. 

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Conclusion

In conclusion, identifying project stakeholders is a critical step in ensuring the success of a project. Effective stakeholder identification requires research, communication, and collaboration, and the results can significantly impact the project outcome. By utilizing best practices, tools, and techniques, project managers can ensure project success and all stakeholder satisfaction with the outcome. 

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