Stakeholder Analysis
Definition
Stakeholder analysis identifies who has a stake in a change and elicits the right information from them. Stakeholders split into direct (looking for a solution to their problem) and indirect (who benefit from the project’s success) — there’s no right/wrong classification, but you must justify it.
Core Ideas
Elicitation techniques
- Interviews — mix open questions (encourage detail) and closed questions (confirm facts). Keep a question list but stay flexible; don’t direct interviewees toward a problem or “plant seeds” — elicit without bias. Record interviews (memory is unreliable).
- Focus groups / workshops — ask a group the same question at once; watch for one or two strong voices silencing shy people; follow up 1-to-1 to validate.
- Shadowing and scenarios — observe the work as it actually happens.
Validating a problem
Gather the right information and justify whether something is truly a problem: if only one person reports it and no one else does, understand why before treating it as a requirement.
Guiding aims
Prioritise stakeholder requirements, record everything, and maintain a goal-driven focus.
Relationships
- Business Analysis — stakeholder work anchors the elicitation phase
- Stakeholder Management and Role Clarity — ongoing alignment and decision roles
- RACI Model — formalizes stakeholder responsibility and involvement
- User Stories — capture elicited needs from the user’s perspective