Stakeholder Management Strategies

Abstract

Stakeholder Management is a substantial practice that needs to be focused on throughout the life cycle of the project. A successful collaboration between an organization and its stakeholders is based on working together to achieve common objectives. A typical definition to describe a stakeholder is a person, group, or organization that has interests in, or can affect, be affected by, or perceive itself to be impacted by, any outcome of the project (ISO2100). A significant distinction between Shareholder and Stakeholder is, Shareholder legally owns a share of stocks in the public or private corporation on the other hand Shareholder is who have a stake in the project. Stakeholders are involved in the project's progress and may have a positive or negative impact on the project inside or outside the organization where many individuals engage in a good implementation of a project from the outset. Designing a strategy for managing stakeholders is a three-step process. Identifying them is the primary step. The second step is an assessment where we classify and prioritize them based on parameters for prioritization, such as power, interest, or influence (PMBOK). Eventually, the last step is to develop a strategy to manage them.

This article offers an outline of developing Stakeholder management strategies, where it focuses on showcasing identification, assessment, and management of stakeholders in a project. These strategies are defined by the demonstration of tools such as the Direction method, Salience Model, Interest & Influence matrix. Besides, this article also sheds light on uncertainties while managing stakeholders.

By Shubham Ingole

Reference

1. ISO 21500, Guidance on Project Management. 2. PMBOK(Project Management Body of Knowledge) Guide – 5th Edition (2017). 3. Freeman, R. Edward, and McVea, John, A Stakeholder Approach to Strategic Management (2001). Available at SSRN: [1] or [2] 4. [3] Strategies for Dealing With Difficult Stakeholders, By Ian Haynes, September 25, 2020