Practical Project Stakeholder Management: Methods, Tools and Templates for Comprehensive Stakeholder Management

1|  List of Tools and Templates

I have provided a number of tools and templates in this book, including some worked examples where relevant. 

Three key benefits of using templates are:

Templates help facilitate structured thinking.

Templates help facilitated comprehensive thinking, reminding us to consider things we perhaps wouldn’t have ordinarily thought about. 

Templates save us time as we are not figuring out from scratch how to write something up.

You are unlikely to need or use all the templates provided.  Larger, more complex projects and programmes will warrant robust stakeholder management and therefore most of these templates would be used.  Less complex projects would follow a lighter approach, and the templates could be used as a thought provoker.

If you are skim-reading through the book just to see the templates, look for this symbol:

Tools and Templates in this Book:

Stakeholder Influence-Involvement Chart

Influence-Involvement Chart Showing Level of Interest

Influence-Involvement Chart Showing Level of Interest and Impact

Influence-Involvement Chart Showing Level of Interest, Impact and Support

Mendelow’s Stakeholder Mapping Chart

Stakeholder Assessment Table

Stakeholder Mapping Chart for Change Projects

Stakeholder Engagement Assessment for Change Projects

Stakeholder Change Concerns Log

Stakeholder Mapping Across Stages

Stakeholder Value Mapping

Project Stakeholder Engagement Meeting Agenda

Stakeholder Engagement Assessment

Stakeholder Expectations Alignment

Project Stakeholder Communication Plan

RACI Matrix

Stakeholder Management Process Appraisal

2|  Introduction to Project Stakeholder Management

Importance of Project Stakeholder Management

One of the most challenging aspects on projects is managing stakeholder expectations and getting their commitment and buy-in to the project.  Many project failures are attributed stakeholder-related issues.   

Quite often, because we’re so busy, we involve our stakeholders too late in the project, or even worse... some are left out completely until things go wrong.  On the other hand, when we do involve our stakeholders, they are sometimes not engaged in the process – either because they don’t have time, or they don’t care.  Sometimes we have the opposite extreme – they get too involved and slow us down.  I bet you’ve also experienced situations where stakeholders aren't aligned between themselves, which makes things tricky.

A one-size-fits-all approach to stakeholder management does not work, as different stakeholders have a different stake in the project.  Plus, we’re dealing with individual personalities... everyone is different.  However, I have found that having a well-structured stakeholder management methodology certainly does help.

Project Stakeholder Management (which includes stakeholder engagement) is one of the key processes in most popular project management methodologies.  It is stressed in both PRINCE2© and the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®).

When working with project stakeholders, we are working with people, and it is therefore more art than science.  When you effectively manage your project stakeholders, you nurture relationships, engagement and collaboration – all key ingredients to project success.

Definition of Project Stakeholder Management

How is Project Stakeholder Management defined?  Looking at resources provided by the PMI, the Association for Project Management (APM) and even PRINCE2© study guides, I couldn’t find a definition of Project Stakeholder Management.  They all offer definitions on project stakeholders, but not a definition on the process, project stakeholder management. So, I have created my own definition, based on my experience.

"Project Stakeholder Management is one of a number of project management processes that should be undertaken throughout the project lifecycle, to identify, assess and engage project stakeholders in a manner that leads to maximised collaboration in support of project success."

This definition embodies three key aspects of stakeholder management:

Project Stakeholder Management is a process, not a one-off activity performed at the start of the project.  Anyone that has delivered several projects will know this: the challenge on projects is not only with the solution being delivered, but the people involved (or that should be involved) in the process.  Different stakeholders will have different levels of significance to the project at different stages of the project.  In longer duration projects, you would anticipate the stakeholders to change as the project proceeds.  A good Project Manager will assess the stakeholders at key points throughout the project lifecycle and will have proactive plans to secure their buy-in and engagement. 

There are several steps in