Research report:
Findings:
What is a stakeholder?
Research began with finding out what is a stakeholder for a construction process. There
seems to be a universal agreement on this term. The formal definition of the term could be
“A stakeholder is anyone who has an interest in the process or outcome of a project”
(Fewings, 2005). For a construction project the definition applies but is not limited to: client,
any contractor, subcontractor, employee in any of the companies related to the project,
designer, local authority, local population etc. Anyone affected by the project could be
considered a stakeholder.
Classification of stakeholders:
A number of sources offers to classify stakeholders into two groups. One of examples -
Internal and external (Winch and Bonke, 2002):
Internal – people or organisations who are directly connected to the project. For example
people working on the project or financing it.
External – People affected by the project.
Further classification of stakeholders is carried out according to their interest in the project
and power they have over the project. A very useful tool for this is the interest-power
matrix, it allows to visually represent importance of stakeholders.
By classifying stakeholders in such manner, it allows for easier and more efficient
allocation of attention and resources needed for specific stakeholders. It is important to
note, that this should be constantly updated to allow for fast adaptation to changes.
Another aspect in which stakeholders could be classified is whether their influence is
beneficial or detrimental to the project.
There are two main factors for good stakeholder management it is information and
communication.
Common mistakes in stakeholder management can be attributed to the two main factors
mentioned above. Failure to adhere to these two points can lead to a variety of problems.
For example, not having enough information about the stakeholders or not being up to date
with such information may introduce problems in the project and even possibly put it to a
halt due to arising and potentially avoidable problems. This can include for example, not
knowing the interests of some parties in the project which in turn could result in a conflict.
Mistakes due to poor communication can include not conveying important information on
time or at all to required parties. This could lead to possible conflicts along the line in the
project. Some stakeholders might feel left out due to this.
References:
Fewings, P. (2005) Construction project management: an integrated approach. Abingdon:
Taylor Francis
Bonke, S & Winch, G 2002, Project Stakeholder Mapping: Analyzing the Interests of Project
Stakeholders. in DP Slevin, DI Cleland & JK Pinto (eds), The Frontiers of Project Management
Research. Project Management Institute, PMI, Pennsylvania USA, pp. 385-405.