How do you use stakeholder analysis tools and techniques to assess their interests, influence, and needs?

1 Stakeholder identification

The first step in stakeholder analysis is to identify who your stakeholders are. You can use various sources of information, such as project documents, organizational charts, contracts, regulations, industry standards, and expert opinions, to create a list of potential stakeholders. You can also use brainstorming, interviews, surveys, or focus groups to gather input from your team and other stakeholders. You should aim to include anyone who can affect or be affected by your project, directly or indirectly, positively or negatively.

2 Stakeholder mapping

The next step in stakeholder analysis is to map your stakeholders according to their level of interest and influence on your project. Interest refers to how much the stakeholder cares about the project outcomes, and influence refers to how much the stakeholder can impact the project decisions and activities. You can use a stakeholder matrix, also known as a power-interest grid, to plot your stakeholders on four quadrants: high interest and high influence, high interest and low influence, low interest and high influence, and low interest and low influence. This will help you prioritize your stakeholders and determine the appropriate communication and engagement strategies for each group.

3 Stakeholder profiling

The third step in stakeholder analysis is to profile your stakeholders based on their characteristics, expectations, and needs. You can use a stakeholder register, a document that records relevant information about each stakeholder, such as their name, role, contact details, objectives, issues, concerns, preferences, and requirements. You can also use a stakeholder analysis questionnaire, a tool that asks specific questions to elicit the stakeholder's views, opinions, and feedback on your project. By profiling your stakeholders, you can gain a deeper understanding of their motivations, interests, and needs, and tailor your project approach accordingly.

4 Stakeholder SWOT analysis

The fourth step in stakeholder analysis is to conduct a SWOT analysis for each stakeholder group. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and it is a technique that evaluates the internal and external factors that can affect your project. By applying SWOT analysis to your stakeholders, you can identify their capabilities, resources, advantages, disadvantages, risks, and opportunities in relation to your project. This will help you leverage their strengths, address their weaknesses, exploit their opportunities, and mitigate their threats.

6 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?