Chapter 3: Developing a stakeholder plan

A stakeholder plan is a fundamental part of any communications strategy, regardless of whether the strategy relates to the overall communications of an organization or to specific initiatives, such as the introduction of a new service or product, or crisis management. 

Every communications strategy requires a stakeholder plan that is tailored to the key audiences that have an impact on the success or failure of the communications strategy objectives.

The stakeholder plan is effectively the roadmap for delivering messages to stakeholders and is the foundation for achieving stakeholder buy-in for the communications strategy’s objectives.

An effective stakeholder plan needs to consider the following questions:

• What are the strategic reasons for consulting with stakeholders?

• With whom do we need to communicate?
• What are the priority issues?
• What types of influence do various stakeholders have?
• What will be the most effective means of communicating/engaging with stakeholders?
• When and how often do we need to communicate with stakeholders?
• Are there opportunities to collaborate to ensure key messages are consistent and avoid consultation fatigue?
• How will the results be captured, tracked and evaluated?

The following steps outline how a stakeholder plan is developed:

Step 1 - Context analysis

The first step in the development of a stakeholder plan is to perform a context analysis using a tool, such as a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats), to evaluate the current challenges associated with the communications strategy’s objectives, with a focus on stakeholder-related issues. 

Depending on the nature of the communications challenge, some or all of the following steps might be considered:

• Analysis of existing information readily available e.g. internal documentation, media coverage etc…
• Interviews with business areas within the organization
• Interviews with senior management
• Brainstorming with the communications team
• Surveys and focus groups.

In most cases, an analysis of this kind will have been undertaken as part of the development of the overall communications strategy. Even if this is the case, it is important to revisit this exercise in the context of stakeholder engagement.

Step 2 - Identifying and evaluating stakeholders

In developing a stakeholder plan, it is vital to identify all the stakeholders related to the relevant communications strategy objectives:

• Which stakeholders are supporters and which are potential detractors?
• Who are the stakeholders who have the most influence on this communications initiative? 
• Which stakeholders will be most affected by this communications initiative? 
• What are the top motivations and interests of these stakeholders and what is their driving force, e.g. financial interest, emotional interest, competitive interest etc.?
• Can some of these stakeholders be grouped in terms of their common needs?

When conducting this identification and evaluation stage it is important to be thorough because it is easy to underestimate the ability of a minor stakeholder to derail a communications strategy if they are not communicated with adequately or appropriately.

Step 3 - Defining stakeholder objectives

In considering what individual stakeholder objectives should be, it is important to consider how their interests overlap with the overall objectives of the communications strategy. In this regard it is important to consider:

• What is their ability to stop the organization achieving its communications objectives? 
• Where does stakeholder power derive from, and how can it be controlled or channeled?
• What are the stakeholders’ business goals and how do these interfere with what the organization is trying to achieve?

By considering these types of questions, individual objectives for each stakeholder or stakeholder grouping can be defined, all of which should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-focused).

Step 4 - Tailoring communications

Having defined the communications objectives for individual stakeholders or stakeholder groups, the next step is to consider what action or actions must be taken to enable the organization to deliver on its overall communications objectives.

This process involves defining what key messages must be developed for each stakeholder or stakeholder group and the most appropriate tools (e.g. newsletter, email, etc.), channels (e.g. website, social media etc.) or platforms (press conference, one-to-one briefing etc.) needed to deliver the messages effectively.

Step 5 - Timing

It is important to plan and time the steps of the stakeholder management plan carefully as certain stakeholder workstreams may need to be prioritized above others to successfully achieve the communications strategy objectives. 

To this end, a timing strategy should be built, based on knowledge, research and available resources.

Step 6 - Engagement plan template

A simple planning tool, such as the one outlined below, can be used to record the stakeholder plan.

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