How can you identify and prioritize financial stakeholders in your program?

1 Step 1: Identify your financial stakeholders

Identifying who your financial stakeholders are in your program is the first step. You can use various sources of information, such as your program charter, business case, budget, contracts, reports, and stakeholder analysis. Additionally, consulting with your program sponsor, team, and other key stakeholders can help you create a comprehensive list of all potential financial stakeholders. Examples of financial stakeholders include the program sponsor who provides the funding and authority for your program; the customer who will receive the benefits or outcomes; any beneficiaries that will be positively affected; suppliers providing resources, services, or products; regulators setting rules, standards, or policies; and competitors challenging or opposing your program.

2 Step 2: Categorize your financial stakeholders

The second step of the process is to categorize your financial stakeholders according to their power and interest in your program. Power refers to the ability or influence a stakeholder has to affect your program, while interest reflects the level of concern or involvement they have. A simple matrix can be used to plot your financial stakeholders into four categories: those with high power and high interest, those with high power and low interest, those with low power and high interest, and those with low power and low interest. The most important and influential financial stakeholders for your program are those with high power and high interest, so it's essential to engage with them frequently and closely while managing their expectations and needs. On the other hand, financial stakeholders with high power but low interest should be kept satisfied and informed. Those with low power but high interest should be consulted and updated, while those with low power and low interest should be monitored occasionally and communicated with as needed.

3 Step 3: Prioritize your financial stakeholders

The third step is to prioritize your financial stakeholders based on their importance and urgency for your program. Importance is the degree of impact or value a stakeholder can bring to your program, while urgency refers to the time sensitivity or pressure a stakeholder can exert. You can rank your financial stakeholders into four levels of priority: high importance, high urgency; high importance, low urgency; low importance, high urgency; and low importance, low urgency. The most critical and time-sensitive financial stakeholders should be focused on first and foremost, with sufficient resources and attention allocated to them. Important but not urgent financial stakeholders should be planned for ahead of time, with regular interactions scheduled. Urgent but not important financial stakeholders should be responded to quickly and efficiently, with some tasks or activities delegated or outsourced. Lastly, the least critical and time-sensitive financial stakeholders should have minimal time and effort spent on them, with communication occurring only when necessary.

4 Step 4: Communicate with your financial stakeholders

The fourth and final step for communicating with your financial stakeholders is to tailor your communication strategy and plan according to their category and priority. This includes considering the frequency, format, content, and tone of the communication. For example, you should communicate more often with those who have high power, interest, importance, and urgency, while those with low power, interest, importance, and urgency should be communicated with less frequently. Additionally, the format should be tailored to the preferences of each stakeholder; emails, reports, meetings, presentations, calls, or chats can all be used. The content should also reflect what each stakeholder expects or requires; progress updates, status reports, issues, risks, changes, decisions or feedback can all be communicated. Finally, the tone should reflect the relationship and trust level with each stakeholder; formal or informal tones can be used depending on the circumstances. By following these steps you can build positive relationships with your financial stakeholders and ensure the alignment and success of your program.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?