Glossary
What does “Stakeholder” mean?
Anyone affected by a project or decision, or able to influence it — customers, staff, managers, partners, investors.
What it means
Anyone affected by a project or decision, or able to influence it — customers, staff, managers, partners, investors. Knowing the stakeholders tells you who to involve and who to keep informed.
An example
For moving payroll to a new provider, the stakeholders include every employee, the finance team, managers who approve hours, the old and new providers, and the auditors.
Not to be confused with: Shareholder
A shareholder owns part of a company; a stakeholder is anyone with an interest in a decision, owner or not.
Where you will see it
In project plans, kickoff meetings, decision frameworks like RACI and DACI, and status reports.
Questions
How do you identify stakeholders?
List everyone who will use, pay for, approve, build, support or be affected by the work, then decide how involved each should be.
What is a stakeholder map?
A chart of stakeholders by how much influence and interest each has, used to decide how to involve them.
How do you keep stakeholders informed without endless meetings?
Agree in advance what each group needs and how often — a short written update for most, a meeting only for those who decide or are most affected.
Other meeting words
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