Reach Partners
  • Home
  • What We Do
    • Case Studies
  • How We Do It
  • Who We Are
  • Blog

How to Keep Your Stakeholders Informed (and Happy)

12/4/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
We’re going to let you in on a project management secret. The hardest part of any project isn’t achieving the actual outcomes – it’s managing the expectations and needs of the people who are involved.

 Surprised? Probably not.

After all, if you’ve ever worked on a project, you know that one person can easily promote a plan – or derail it. That’s why identifying your stakeholders and determining how best to keep them informed is critical to the success of any project.

Stakeholder analysis is a useful tool that helps you understand stakeholders’ expectations throughout the project lifecycle. Once you understand expectations, you can communicate in a way that creates enthusiasm, trust, and excitement. These are the emotional responses you need to build the good will that will help you usher a project to the finish line.  

As Mannon Deguire put it in “Greatness, A Place Beyond Stakeholders’ Expectations:” “Projects are about hope. They need to be exciting because it is the excitement that energizes the system and gives us the energy to do the work and spend the time and money to accomplish a project.”

So, how do you start?

First, take a moment to write down everyone who is a potential stakeholder.

Then take time to answer these questions for each stakeholder category:
  • What’s in this project for the stakeholder?
  • How will the project (in progress or completed) affect them?
  • What if it fails?
  • What is the stakeholder’s interest and ability to influence others?
  • Is the stakeholder supportive? Neutral? Against the project?
  • How might their support affect the type or frequency of communication?
  • What does the project need from each stakeholder?

By answering these questions in a grid or table format, you will create your stakeholder analysis. Here’s a partial sample analysis Reach Partners did when introducing a group of interns to project management concepts:
Picture
Once you’ve completed the analysis, you’ll be able to build a plan for communication or stakeholder engagement. The plan can include key messages for each stakeholder or stakeholder group and additional details, such as the way those messages will be delivered (email, meeting, report, or phone call) and how often (weekly, daily, or project start and end).

Experience has taught us that projects are about communication, communication and communication. As long as you can inform your stakeholders in a timely, appropriate manner, they’ll remain happy and your project is likely to succeed.

- Rachel
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Reach Partners

    Categories

    All
    Anita
    Beauty
    Communication
    Connection
    Empathy
    Events
    Facilitation
    Gratitude
    Integrity
    Meeting
    Partner Stories
    Possibility
    Project Management
    Rachel
    Resources
    Strategy
    Team

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013

Join our newsletter
CONTACT US
Reach Partners, Inc
3330 Fiechtner Dr. Suite 100
​Fargo, ND 58103-2321
701-271-8170
Copyright (C) 2022  Reach Partners Inc.
  • Home
  • What We Do
    • Case Studies
  • How We Do It
  • Who We Are
  • Blog