Stakeholders can make all the difference on a project, and can help you carry a dazzling success to the finish line. However, without their support, progress can be slow and even the best ideas may struggle to succeed. So, it’s important to know who they are.
A systematic way to identify stakeholders is to think through every aspect of the project and then ask who may be affected by it. This could be your budget, your time allocation, your staffing and resources. And don’t forget about any potential customers!
You should then divide the stakeholders into one of the following four areas:
High influence, high support: These are your heavy hitters. They help pull the project in the right direction. Their influence means that they can ensure those who are less enthusiastic do the same. Keep them on your side with regular updates, so they can keep promoting your project, announcing its successes and encouraging others to get on board.
High influence, low support: Think carefully about getting these stakeholders on your side. Take the time to guide them through their issues with the project. Win them over with their areas of interest. Does a reluctant stakeholder love technology? Show them the cool technical side of the project! Are they interested in design? Include them in the design process! If you’ve tried everything, and still can’t increase their support, then you need to decrease their impact: ensure their influence doesn’t negatively affect progress, or complicate changes.
Low influence, high support: These won’t affect the delivery of the project, but they can speed up the delivery of the work, and encourage others. Give them a communication platform to enthuse about your project.
Low influence, low support: These might not agree with the direction of the project, but they have little real influence on its outcome. Monitor them, to ensure they don’t get moved or promoted to a place of high impact. Negativity can be contagious, so try and keep theirs under wraps.
Knowing how to define, mobilize and influence your stakeholders is an important step on the road to a project’s success.
A systematic way to identify stakeholders is to think through every aspect of the project and then ask who may be affected by it. This could be your budget, your time allocation, your staffing and resources. And don’t forget about any potential customers!
You should then divide the stakeholders into one of the following four areas:
High influence, high support: These are your heavy hitters. They help pull the project in the right direction. Their influence means that they can ensure those who are less enthusiastic do the same. Keep them on your side with regular updates, so they can keep promoting your project, announcing its successes and encouraging others to get on board.
High influence, low support: Think carefully about getting these stakeholders on your side. Take the time to guide them through their issues with the project. Win them over with their areas of interest. Does a reluctant stakeholder love technology? Show them the cool technical side of the project! Are they interested in design? Include them in the design process! If you’ve tried everything, and still can’t increase their support, then you need to decrease their impact: ensure their influence doesn’t negatively affect progress, or complicate changes.
Low influence, high support: These won’t affect the delivery of the project, but they can speed up the delivery of the work, and encourage others. Give them a communication platform to enthuse about your project.
Low influence, low support: These might not agree with the direction of the project, but they have little real influence on its outcome. Monitor them, to ensure they don’t get moved or promoted to a place of high impact. Negativity can be contagious, so try and keep theirs under wraps.
Knowing how to define, mobilize and influence your stakeholders is an important step on the road to a project’s success.
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