The following template is provided for use with the Stakeholder Management Plan deliverable. The blue text provides guidance to the author, and it should be deleted before publishing the document. This document should be modified to the Author s project requirements.
Stakeholder Management Plan Contents 1 Document Control... 3 2 Introduction... 4 3 Stakeholder Identification and Analysis... 5 3.1 Analyze Stakeholders... 6 3.2 Classify Stakeholders... 7 4 Stakeholder Management Plan... 8 5 Manage and Control Stakeholder Engagement... 10 6 Appendix A Stakeholder Register... 11 7 Approvals... 12 Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 2
1 Document Control Stakeholder Management Plan Revision History Date of revision Name Changes Reviewers Name Role Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 3
2 Introduction Stakeholder Management Plan The Stakeholder Management Plan includes the processes needed to identify the groups, people, or organizations that could impact or be impacted by the project. The goals of the Stakeholder Management Plan include: Analyze stakeholder expectations and impact on the project. Manage the strategies for effectively engaging stakeholders in project decisions and execution. Communicate to stakeholders for understanding their needs and expectations. Address issues. Manage conflict. This document describes the processes and tools that the <Insert Project Name> will use to administer Stakeholder Management. The scope of this plan is documented relative to (but not limited to) Stakeholder Identification and Analysis, Understanding Goals and Expectations, Planning Stakeholder Management, and Managing The Stakeholder Engagement. Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 4
3 Stakeholder Identification and Analysis Stakeholder Management Plan Stakeholders are the people, groups, or organizations that could impact or be impacted by a decision, activity, or outcome of the project. Stakeholders typically include groups or individuals who complete the following: Sponsor the project Generate, review, and approve requirements Participate in the decision making process Develop the application (e.g., project team members) Use the application Are affected by the application Support the application Identifying key stakeholders and stakeholder groups is the first step towards documenting relevant information regarding stakeholder interest, involvement, interdependencies, influence and potential impact to project success. The proactive process of identifying, understanding and influencing key individuals and groups will increase their readiness for accepting any project changes and, thus, yield successful results. A stakeholder or stakeholder group consists of people with a common purpose or goal and significant involvement or interest in the success of the project; they are spokespersons representing a larger group. The group they represent must be comfortable with the selected representatives approving and signing off any program deliverables and decisions. Do not limit the individual or group to only the immediate people or functions, with which you work, also include groups that are instigating (directly or indirectly) or affected by the project. Examples of stakeholder groups include the client IT organization, third party suppliers, outsourced units, asset owners, customers, etc. To identify potential stakeholder groups, ask the following questions: Who participates in the work? Who receives or signs off on the work? Who uses the work when we finish the project? Who defends the work if something goes wrong? Who upgrades and maintains the work? Whose career path is affected by the work? Who includes the work status within their management reporting? Who supplies inputs to this work? Whom is this work critically dependent upon? The Stakeholder Register will be used to document key stakeholders. Confirm the list with the PMO so that there are no missing stakeholders. To complete this procedure, refer to the Stakeholder Register in Appendix A. Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 5
3.1 Analyze Stakeholders Gather information to determine whose interest should be taken into account throughout the project. Includes stakeholder relationships that can be leveraged to build coalitions and potential partnerships to enhance the probability of project success: Identify all potential stakeholders: Roles, departments, interests, knowledge, expectations, and interest levels. Analyze the potential impact of support each stakeholder could generate and classify them to define a strategic approach. Assess how key stakeholders are likely to react or respond in various situations in order to plan how to influence them to enhance their support and mitigate potential negative impacts. Consider which members of senior management to involve in this initial work. Select people with the decision-making power to proceed. Understand (in their terms) the business problems they face, the business results they wish to achieve, and their expectations on the conduct or execution of the program. Uncover individual perceptions, expectations, and facts. Involve as many of the senior managers needed to determine the current level of consensus regarding the program. The most important objective is to determine what stakeholders want (in terms of both business results and personal agendas) and to ensure that their goals and expectations are consistent with what they say the organization should achieve. To better understand and analyze the project stakeholders, ask senior management the following questions: What are the organization's corporate strategy, business unit strategy, and/or operating vision? Is it viable? What additional work, if any, is required before the process proceeds? How does this proposed change contribute to achieving the business strategy? What does senior management anticipate as the business goals and expectations of the change? What are senior management's expectations for program delivery and quality? What change areas contribute the most value to the organization? What leadership and governance expectations exist? Who is involved? How frequently are meetings held? What relationship aspects are most important? What sponsor requirements or expectations around work authorization, time frame review processes, discussion venues, exit criteria, sign-off procedures, and commit points exist? What personal expectations and perceptions exist regarding the change? How well do/does the senior executives and/or the project team understand the business goals (from the senior manager's point of view)? To what extent do senior executives and/or the program or project teams concur with senior management's interpretation of these program goals (from the senior manager's point of view)? How are decisions made throughout the program to effect change? Make note of these above and additional related questions to continue analyzing stakeholders. Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 6
3.2 Classify Stakeholders Classify the stakeholder by using a Power / Interest Grid, which places each stakeholder into a grid that is related to their Power (Influence) and Interest (Concern. Power Interest Grid High B Keep Satisfied Manage Closely A Power C E Monitor Keep Informed D Low Interest Low High The Power Interest Grid helps determine who has high or low power to affect the project, and who has high or low interest. The stakeholders with high power need to be kept satisfied, while those with high interest need to be kept informed. When a stakeholder has both, their expectations must be managed closely. High Power, Low Interest Keep these stakeholders informed and satisfied with the project, even if they are not interested. High Power, High Interest These stakeholders are decision makers who have the biggest impact on project success. Manage their expectations closely. High Interest, Low Power Keep these stakeholders informed so the project get positive remarks around the rest of the organization. Low Interest, Low Power These stakeholders require the least amount of attention, be sure to monitor. Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 7
4 Stakeholder Management Plan Stakeholder Management Plan The Stakeholder Management Plan develops appropriate management strategies to effectively engage stakeholders throughout the project based on the analysis of their needs, interests, and potential impact on project success. The following key points must be considered and addressed wherever possible to effectively manage stakeholders: Understand Stakeholder Goals and Expectations: Document stakeholder expectations, assign responsibility for key stakeholders, determine performance measures, and define the monitoring approach. Confirm both formal and informal goals, expectations and concerns. Identify what stakeholders expect to achieve from the business changes in personal and business terms. Provide a comprehensive understanding of what to achieve and each stakeholder's role in making that happen. Establish a process to assess and monitor stakeholder expectations to ensure the program outcomes remain aligned throughout the program's duration. Understand Engagement Level: The Stakeholder Assessment Matrix is used to further understand the required level of engagement needed. Understanding the current engagement level will allow a comprehensive plan towards a desired level. Stakeholder Unaware Resistant Neutral Supportive Leading Stakeholder 1 C D Stakeholder 2 C D Stakeholder 3 C, D C means Current Engagement and D means Desired Engagement. Unaware Unaware of project and potential impacts Resistant Aware of project and potential impacts, resistant to change Neutral Aware of project, but neither supportive or resistant Supportive Aware of project and potential impacts and supportive to change Leading Aware of project and potential impacts, actively engaged in ensuring the project is a success. Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 8
Stakeholder Communication Requirements: Referring to the Project Communications Plan as guidance, identify the communication materials required for each stakeholder and stakeholder group based on their required expectations. Using the table below, Include the Information Needs, Information Source, Delivery Method, and Timing Considerations: Project Stakeholder Information Needs Information Source Delivery Method Timing Considerations Customer #1 Customer #2 Customer #3 Performing Organization Project Team Members Sponsor Senior Executive Other Internal Stakeholders Other External Stakeholders Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 9
5 Manage and Control Stakeholder Engagement Managing Stakeholders involves communicating and working with stakeholders to meet their needs and expectations, addressing issues as they occur, and executing appropriate stakeholder engagement in project activities throughout the project. The goal is to increase support and minimize resistance from stakeholders, increasing the chances to achieve project success. Identify changes in stakeholder groups o Review the stakeholder expectations and project communication and validate that the profiles, activities, and communications are still current. Use this review to identify new stakeholder groups and adjust and modify the listing. Identify Issues, Remediation Actions, and Improvement Opportunities o Assess any issues to stakeholder goals and expectations and the urgency for resolution. o Work with the various stakeholder groups to articulate their needs and reach resolution on any issues or conflicts. As needed, based on magnitude, urgency, or misalignment, document and elevate the conflicts through leadership and governance structure for resolution and to drive consensus. o Identify improvement opportunities. Typically, improvement opportunities are larger, more systematic areas of weakness that require more effort to investigate root causes, agree solutions, and implement. Implement changes o Based on the results of the Identify Issues, Remediation Actions, and Improvement Opportunities step, implement the proposed change to the program and revise the Program Communication Plan as needed. Monitor stakeholder expectations and satisfaction - Monitoring stakeholder expectations involves ensuring the expectations remain realistic. o Analyze each identified expectation to determine if it meets its intended goal and performance criteria. o Gather input on stakeholder perception and satisfaction to analyze whether an expectation is met. o Identify gaps where improvements are needed to address expectations that are not at the desired level. Review and revise goals and expectations - This reviews and confirms the validity of the current stakeholder expectations and corresponding program goals and identifies revisions to the goals and expectations. Communicate results o Using the Communication Management Plan as a guide, develop the communications materials and communicate the approved, agreed upon, and prioritized expectations to all stakeholders. Iterate this process as new values and expectations are identified, documented, and confirmed. Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 10
6 Appendix A Stakeholder Register Stakeholder Management Plan Stakeholder Register: The Stakeholder Register contains details about the identified stakeholders. Begin creating this during the Identify Stakeholders process. Stakeholder Name Stakeholder Title Expectation Priority (1=High 5=Low) Power (1=High 5=Low) Interest (1=High 5=Low) Measure of Success Criteria Description Stakeholder Name Name of stakeholder or stakeholder group. Stakeholder Title Title of the stakeholder Expectation Description of the expectation that needs to be met. Priority Level of importance and resources that are dedicated to meeting the expectation, using a scale to prioritize (e.g., High = 5, Low = 1). Power Interest Measure of Success Measurement criteria to be used for each expectation (captures and documents the criteria articulated by the stakeholders during the Gather Program Goals and Expectations step). Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 11
7 Approvals The following individuals must have final approval for this Stakeholder Management Plan. Please place your approval by either digital signature or acknowledging your approval: Name Role Confidential - @2017 Cortelligence Consulting Group (www.cortelligence.com) Page 12