A stakeholder analysis is a project management process that helps you grasp the needs of each stakeholder throughout a project. Stakeholder analyses assess everyone that is impacted by your business or project—your team, your investors, your customers, and your community—to uncover expectations, pain points, risks, and priorities.

If you’re wondering how to do a stakeholder analysis, first decide who your stakeholders are. Then, prioritize them based on two factors—power and interest. Stakeholder mapping will set you up for success for the rest of the process. Some stakeholders have more power to assist or slow down your project’s progress. Some stakeholders may be interested in frequent, data-rich reports, while others may not need as many updates.

Using FigJam’s free stakeholder example analysis tools, you can place each of your stakeholders into a bracket to determine their influence and interest levels. Based on that information, you can gain key insight into how often they expect you to communicate with them and how closely they expect to manage your progress.

Conducting a stakeholder analysis is important because it helps you and your stakeholders align priorities and objectives before you begin your project. The analysis can provide helpful information, such as which stakeholders will promote an initiative or project and which stakeholders might not be fully looped in. Often, the product owner will need to be in close communication with the stakeholder group in order to effectively finish the project efficiently.  There are also typically different stakeholders organized in tiers, such as primary stakeholders or secondary stakeholders depending on their role.

You can perform a project stakeholder analysis at any stage in your business or venture. But it’s always best practice to perform a stakeholder analysis before the start of a project. That way, you can get a better read on all involved stakeholders and their needs before you make important decisions. A stakeholder matrix might help you organize responsibilities to determine a project's success.

A stakeholder analysis template should help you understand the role of key players involved within your project. When developing your analysis, include the following information:

• Stakeholder Name and Role: Identify important stakeholders from relevant teams. Include key players such as designers, developers, project managers, content writers, and the CEO.
• Level of Influence: Evaluate the stakeholder's influence on the project.
• Level of Interest: Determine the stakeholder's level of interest and involvement within the project.
• Needs, Expectations, and Concerns: Understand different stakeholders' motivations.
• Potential Impact on the Project: Prioritize stakeholders based on their potential impact, level of influence, and interest.
• Engagement/Communication Strategy: Determine a communication method and strategy that aligns with each stakeholder's goals.
• By understanding different stakeholders' needs, teams can develop strategies to engage key players, anticipate challenges, and ensure project success.