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Project stakeholder management is comprised of the processes required to identify the people, groups, and organizations that can impact or be impacted by the project. It involves analyzing stakeholder expectations in developing management strategies for effectively engaging stakeholders and project decisions and execution. Stakeholder management also focuses on continuous communications with stakeholders, managing conflict, and promoting appropriate stakeholder engagement in project decisions and activities.
The following processes and primary goals of project stakeholder management are defined below:
- Identify Stakeholders. Goal: stakeholder register.
- Plan Stakeholder Management. Goal: stakeholder management plan.
- Manage Stakeholder Engagement. Goal: issue log, change requests.
- Control Stakeholder engagement. Goal: work performance information, change requests.
The high level Project Stakeholder Management output elements, by Process Group, are:
| Initiating | Planning | Executing | Monitoring and Controlling | Closing |
| Stakeholder register | Stakeholder Management plan | Stakeholder register
CR's | Work Performance Info
CR's | |
Project stakeholder management focuses on the processes required to identify the people, groups, or organizations that can either impact or be impacted by the project. Some of these processes include the following:
- Analyzing stakeholder expectations and their impact on the project.
- Developing appropriate management strategies for engaging stakeholders.
- Implementing continuous communications with stakeholders to understand needs and expectations.
- Fostering stakeholder engagement in the project for decisions and activities.
- Focusing on stakeholder satisfaction as a key project objective.
Identify Stakeholders is the process of identifying all individuals or organizations that can be positively or negatively impacted by the project, and documenting their influence, impact, interest, and involvement on project success.
This is a key area in the project management process, as many projects fail due to a lack of complete stakeholder identification. Most projects will have a large number of stakeholders, and it is a project manager's job to identify stakeholders and understand the impact of the project on their specific business areas. In this respect, the project manager's job amounts to a relationship management function.
The key output of this process is to create a stakeholder register which identifies in great detail, everything about the stakeholders on the project.
For further information on Project Stakeholder Management, consult EdWel's PMP Textbook 5th Edition.
As part of the Manage Stakeholder Expectations process, the project manager works with the stakeholders, understands and addresses their needs and expectations. The Inputs, Tools and Techniques, and Output of Manage Stakeholder Expectations process is given below.
Manage Stakeholder Expectations Process
| Inputs | Tools & Techniques | Outputs |
| Stakeholder register | Communication methods | Organizational process assets updates |
| Stakeholder management strategy | Interpersonal skills | Change requests |
| Project management plan | Management skills | Project management plan updates |
| Issue log | | Project document updates |
| Change log | | |
| Organizational process assets | | |
Control stakeholders engagement process is a newly added process group. See PMBOK for details.
This article courtesy of Richard Perrin, PMP.
Questions on Project Stakeholder Management are available at
Stakeholders Questions.
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