One of the most important project management papers, stakeholder register or stakeholder registry, contains crucial data on your project's stakeholders. Stakeholder management is highly essential to project success because if your stakeholders are not satisfied, your team will have trouble, and your project won't be successful.
Every project's success is contingent on effective stakeholder management. Successful project managers utilize the strategic discipline of stakeholder management to gain and maintain support for their efforts from people inside and outside the project's organization. If you want to learn in-depth about stakeholder registration, we suggest Project Management Professional certification.
What is a Stakeholder Register?
A project-related document called a project stakeholder registration includes all the specifics about the project's stakeholders. A project management stakeholder register will help you create a better project and manage it better. The people, companies, and groups interested in the projects and their outputs are listed in this document.
Who is a Stakeholder?
A stakeholder is an individual with interest in a business who has the ability to influence or be affected by it. A corporation's investors, employees, clients, and suppliers comprise its primary stakeholders. However, the idea has been extended to encompass communities, organizations, and trade groups due to the growing focus on corporate social responsibility.
- A stakeholder has an involvement in a firm and has the potential to influence or be affected by its operations and performance.
- Investors, communities, customers, employees, suppliers, governments, or trade groups are instances of typical stakeholders.
- Stakeholders in an entity can be either internal or external to the company.
- One form of stakeholder that organizations need to be mindful of is shareholders.
- In some instances, the general public may be regarded as a stakeholder.
Stakeholder registers Categories
- Title
- Names
- Roles
- Roles
- Necessities
- Aspirations
- Influence type
| Stakeholder Name | Role/Position | Interest | Influence | Impact | Engagement Strategy |
|---|
| [Name] | [Role] | [High/Medium/Low] | [High/Medium/Low] | [Positive/Negative/Neutral] | [Monitor/Manage/Inform/Engage] |
From conception to conclusion, stakeholder satisfaction throughout a project can be ensured by a stakeholder register. It is a document that includes the accomplishments of each member who worked on the project from the beginning to the end. A little time invested in locating, assessing, and capturing stakeholder interests and issues can have a significant impact. The register is beneficial when managing big projects or projects that act fast. We can best use our limited time and resources by gathering all the relevant parties in one location.
When the project sponsors approve the project papers, it is essential to construct the stakeholder register. At this point, each stakeholder can be studied after being identified, enabling the development of a plan to manage them. Project managers can complete projects with the aid of this paper.
What is the Purpose of Stakeholder Register?
Stakeholders can be internal or external to the project or company, and may have positive or negative influences. Internal stakeholders include department heads, project team members, the board of directors, executive managers, and project sponsors, whose activities impact or are impacted by the project.
Satisfying stakeholders is crucial for project success, whether it’s a complex IT project or a small office development. A stakeholder register is an essential tool for project managers to engage supportive stakeholders effectively using communication strategies aimed at winning their support.
Stakeholder engagement is a continuous process throughout a project. While there are various tools for creating a stakeholder strategy, managing stakeholders requires a customized approach based on the project's specifics. Identifying key stakeholders begins right after the project charter is issued, and their information should be entered into the stakeholder register. If you're looking to understand stakeholder categories better, consider a PMP course focusing on the stakeholder register.
Information Shown on a Stakeholder Register
The primary information that should be available on your stakeholder management register is:
- Type of stakeholder
- Name of the stakeholder
- Job Title or Description of the stakeholder
- Type of stakeholder i.e., internal or external
- Project role for the organization
- Preferred communication mode
- Expectations from the project
- Influence on project
How do you Maintain a Stakeholder Register?
Stakeholder analysis at the outset of a project is one of the initial things a project manager should do. Stakeholder management starts by asking those simple yet essential questions.
- Who might be affected by the project's results?
- Who could have an impact on the project's goals?
This will be the foundation for the stakeholder management process you use.
Creating and maintaining a project stakeholder register requires a lot of steps that need to be performed. Having a stakeholder register is highly essential. Here we list the steps you must remember when maintaining your stakeholder register.
Locating the Project's Stakeholders
The project sponsor, project manager, project team, and your customers are some instances of apparent stakeholders. There might, however, be unnamed or unknown stakeholders. Both their existence and their potential impact are unknown to us. How can we raise the chance that we'll find unidentified stakeholders?
- Examine stakeholder registers for similar ongoing and completed projects.
- Seek support from your sponsor in identifying stakeholders, particularly those at the highest levels of your organization.
- Discuss individuals and organizations within the operational areas with your project team.
- Search subject-matter professionals
- Look into the contractors working on the project.
- Also, explore the vendors who are working on the project.
Project Stakeholder Evaluation
Stakeholders are not made equal. Some stakeholders require more attention, while others require less. How do we find this out?
The Power/Influence grid is a straightforward technique that groups stakeholders as per their level of power (High/Low) and influence (High/Low). Project managers have to carefully prepare and carry out their communications with the stakeholders who have a lot of power and influence. The PMBOK stakeholder register template suggests the following methods that you could follow:
- Grid of Influence & Impact
- Salience Model (categorizing the stakeholders according to urgency, power, and legitimacy)
Analysis of Stakeholders and Management Plan
The project stakeholder strategy is created using stakeholder categorization, helping project managers manage stakeholders based on their demands, influence, and involvement. Stakeholders with more influence require different approaches. Access to the stakeholder register may be restricted due to sensitive information and should be stored securely.
As the project unfolds, new stakeholders may emerge, and their characteristics may change, making it crucial to maintain the register's integrity throughout the project. Effective stakeholder management is vital to a project's success, as poor management, especially of influential stakeholders, can lead to project failure.
Stakeholder Register Template
One of the most required for executing projects, the Stakeholder register aids in categorizing, identifying, and evaluating the project's stakeholders. Numerous questions about the stakeholders are addressed in the project stakeholder register template. Here are a few of them:
- What are the stakeholders' names and contact information?
- What demands and requirements do the stakeholders have?
- Which stakeholders are the most active participants?
- What are the best methods for communicating with stakeholders?
- What degree of influence do stakeholders have?
The stakeholder register template word will help you create a functional stakeholder register that is not very complex and easy to handle. If you are searching for some of the best stakeholder register PMI, we suggest Project Management training certification. The course provides a proper understanding of how you can create and maintain a stakeholder register. If you are looking for a stakeholder register example, below we have listed a few:
This sample stakeholder register will help you understand how to create a stakeholder register.
Stakeholder Register Examples
The importance of a stakeholder register should have become evident by now since I have now shared crucial information about it. In the following examples, you can see how a PMI stakeholder register is used in real-world scenarios:
Example 1
A simple stakeholder register is a concise document capturing essential information about project stakeholders. It typically includes names, roles, expectations, and contact details. It provides a quick reference for project teams. Check out the example below; it’s a straightforward project stakeholder register template that facilitates effective communication and ensures awareness of key stakeholders.
Example 2
A detailed stakeholder register, on the other hand, is a comprehensive document offering in-depth insights into project stakeholders. It encompasses not only names and contact details but also analyzes their roles, interests, expectations, and influence. In the following example of the stakeholder register it shows detailed info on strategic stakeholder management. As evident from the information, you can see how it offers precise communication and alignment with project objectives.
Stakeholder Register Template 1
This detailed stakeholder register template features 10 attributes for comprehensive information on the stakeholder. The attributes have enough room to tell you precisely the role played by the stakeholder. A comprehensive stakeholder template like this is necessary for larger organizations. PDF link to the Template
Stakeholder Register Template 2
Small organizations can use simpler stakeholder registers. The free stakeholder register template in the next example has fewer attributes and just enough information on the stakeholders. PDF Link to the Template
What are the Types of Stakeholders?
Stakeholders frequently influence a company’s decisions and its success in achieving objectives. They provide insight, inspiration, and regulation, making it essential to understand them to ensure that business goals align with their needs, goals, and expectations. Knowing the different types of stakeholders can help your company address their needs effectively. Here are the four types of project stakeholders:
1. Investors
Investors are deeply interested in the success of a firm since their financial investment depends on it. Most investors seek financial returns and only invest when they are confident in receiving a return within a specific timeframe. They expect their capital to grow and may receive a percentage of the company's ownership in return for their financial contributions, making them shareholders.
Another type of investor is a lender, who may provide funds for the firm’s operations or expansion. Investors’ influence on the company can be significant, as they expect profitability and growth.
2. Employees
Employees are stakeholders because they rely on the executive team’s business decisions for job security, fair wages, valuable benefits, and a safe work environment. The company’s success directly affects their loyalty, creativity, and overall sentiment towards the employer. Senior executives, who are also employees, often make critical business decisions impacting the company's growth and future operations. Their effectiveness in managing the company influences not only its success but also their reputation and ability to secure future opportunities.
3. Customers
Customers purchase goods and services from businesses, and they expect high-quality products at reasonable prices. Without customers, a company cannot survive. As stakeholders, customers are interested in the company’s performance and expect businesses to meet their demands. Companies must engage with customers to fulfill their needs and deliver superior goods and services. Internal customers, such as employees working on specific projects, are also stakeholders.
For example, a marketing team working on a campaign to attract home loan customers can impact the lending department’s goals. Employees in the lending department, with their own targets, may be interested in the marketing team’s activities as they relate to the project.
4. Suppliers
Suppliers provide goods to a company and rely on it for revenue. Their products directly affect how the business operates, and they often prioritize safety and profitability. Suppliers, like contractors and vendors, are stakeholders because their success as independent businesses may depend on their relationship with the company.
These parties have financial responsibilities, such as operational expenses, employee salaries, and business loans. To maintain business, suppliers often form partnerships with other businesses and prefer to ensure that a company’s operations are stable before committing to a long-term relationship. Understanding and managing these stakeholder relationships is critical for a company's success, as each group has a vested interest in the company's performance and can significantly impact its operations and strategic decisions.
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Content of Stakeholder Register
The stakeholder register contains essential information about the different stakeholders in an organization. In small companies, the register would suffice to hold the information, while larger businesses have a separate document. In this post, I will share an example of a stakeholder register and its contents. I will also help you understand how to use it and leverage the information it contains to make the right decisions.
Stakeholder Identification
In every project or undertaking, there are various stakeholders. Often, it may happen that you might not interact with all of them, and some may also be unfamiliar with your work or team. I have seen that the identification information in these registers comes in handy when reaching out to stakeholders for communication. The section contains the following basic information:
- Name of the stakeholder
- Title
- Contact information
- Role in the organization/project
Stakeholder Assessment
When it comes to successful project management, we need to stick to the fundamentals. The questions that should be asked should be related to whether the stakeholder needs are met and whether you are comprehending their requirements, expectations, communication needs, and impact on the project. To figure all that out, you will need these assessment parameters to evaluate each stakeholder:
- Their communication frequency
- Their communication needs
- Expectations
- Project influence
- Interest and power
Stakeholder Classification
In the Stakeholder Classification section, you have to categorize the stakeholders systematically using diverse criteria. The classification should usually start around their power and interest in the project, which emphasizes the need to differentiate high-power stakeholders from those with lesser influence. Further, you can add attributes such as internal stakeholder, external stakeholder, positive influence, supporter, resistor, or neutral, which can be assigned for a nuanced understanding.
Here, this crucial information serves as a foundation for shaping a robust stakeholder management strategy. It will also enable a more tailored and effective approach to engaging with various stakeholder groups. Such strategic categorization is important for a comprehensive grasp of the project landscape and for enhancing overall project success. This section of the register has helped me during project implementation on several occasions, and I strongly recommend keeping it updated at all times.
Categories of Stakeholders
There are mainly three categories of stakeholders in project management. They are:
- Internal Stakeholders: As the name suggests, internal stakeholders are present within a business. Project stakeholders, including such personnel, are directly influenced by the project.
- External Stakeholders: Those interested in a company's success but not immediately connected to its projects are considered external stakeholders. An illustration of an external stakeholder is a supplier.
- Primary Stakeholders: Primary stakeholders, often referred to as key stakeholders, have a more significant stake in a project's success because it will directly affect them. They proactively support a project. Customers and team leaders are instances of these stakeholders.
- Secondary Stakeholders: Secondary stakeholders play a more minor, more general role in the completion of the project. These stakeholders assist with legal, financial, and legal issues.
- Direct Stakeholders: Direct stakeholders participate in a project's continuing operations. Given that a firm's initiatives are essential to the everyday work of its employees, they might be regarded as direct stakeholders.
- Indirect Stakeholders: Indirect stakeholders are more concerned with the project's outcome than its execution process. The issues of indirect stakeholders include availability, packaging, and cost. One type of indirect stakeholder is the customer.
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Inputs for Stakeholder Register
To authenticate the project management stakeholder register, you will need several inputs that contain essential information. Here are four of the important ones:
Project Charter
The project charter is a key document that contributes critical information to the stakeholder register. It outlines project objectives, stakeholders, and important details about the scope. This foundational input aids in identifying and engaging stakeholders effectively and ensures alignment with project goals.
Contract Document
Incorporating details from the contract document into the Stakeholder Register is vital. This input delineates contractual obligations, key stakeholders, and expectations. Understanding these aspects enhances communication and relationship management throughout the project lifecycle.
Old Lessons Learned Input
Drawing from past experiences working with stakeholders is needed to avoid unexpected surprises. Hence, the inclusion of old lessons learned is crucial to the stakeholder register. Insights from previous projects will provide you with valuable context that can help in anticipating stakeholder behaviors and preferences. Leveraging historical knowledge is also essential to proactively manage your stakeholders.
Organizational Process Assets
Integrating organizational process assets into the stakeholder register is pivotal as they are used to guide the management of the projects and operations. These assets encompass things such as templates, guidelines, and historical information. Utilizing such resources enhances the efficiency of stakeholder identification, analysis, and management and is ultimately useful for streamlining project processes and fostering successful outcomes.
Conclusion
A stakeholder is someone, team, or institution interested in your project. A project document called a stakeholder register contains information about your stakeholders. When you encounter one of these new stakeholders, you must update the register. A stakeholder's qualities should be maintained in the register when they change. The essential element you require to conduct a successful stakeholder analysis is your stakeholder registration. We suggest KnowledgeHut PMP certification training to get a head start in your learning process.
