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Stakeholder register

A stakeholder register is a living list of individuals and groups who can influence or are affected by the project, capturing their interests, power, engagement, and communication needs. It is created early and updated throughout the project to guide stakeholder engagement.

Key Points

  • Initiated early and maintained throughout the project life cycle.
  • Combines identification and analysis: role, interest, influence, attitude, and engagement levels.
  • Drives the stakeholder engagement plan and communication approach.
  • Contains sensitive data and may require restricted access and discretion.
  • Use consistent rating scales (e.g., high/medium/low) for influence, interest, and engagement.
  • Update when stakeholders change, decisions shift, or new information emerges.

Purpose

  • Ensure no critical stakeholder is missed during planning and execution.
  • Prioritize engagement efforts based on influence, interest, and impact.
  • Tailor communications to stakeholder needs and preferences.
  • Anticipate sources of support or resistance and plan responses.
  • Provide a single reference for the team to coordinate stakeholder interactions.

Field Definitions

  • Name and role: Stakeholder name, title, and position in the organization.
  • Organization/Category: Internal, external, vendor, regulator, customer, sponsor, team, etc.
  • Contact details: Email, phone, location, time zone.
  • Power/Influence: Ability to affect scope, resources, or outcomes (e.g., high/medium/low).
  • Interest: Degree of concern or involvement with project outcomes (e.g., high/medium/low).
  • Impact: Potential positive or negative effect on project success.
  • Current engagement: Observed level (unaware, resistant, neutral, supportive, leading).
  • Desired engagement: Target level to enable success.
  • Attitude/Support level: Summary of stance and key concerns.
  • Requirements/Expectations: Needs, success criteria, and decision rights.
  • Communication preferences: Channel, frequency, format, language, accessibility needs.
  • RACI/Decision role: Responsibility, accountability, consultation, inform status.
  • Owner: Team member accountable for the relationship.
  • Strategies/Actions: Engagement tactics, talking points, and follow-ups.
  • Risk/Opportunity notes: How this stakeholder could create risk or enable benefits.
  • Last updated/Version: Date and version control for auditability.

How to Create

  • Gather inputs from the charter, business case, contracts, and organizational charts.
  • Brainstorm with the team and sponsor; include cross-functional and external parties.
  • Map stakeholders by influence and interest to prioritize attention.
  • Interview key stakeholders to capture expectations and concerns.
  • Define consistent rating scales and terms to avoid ambiguity.
  • Populate initial fields and validate with the sponsor or governance body.
  • Set security and access rules given the sensitivity of analysis data.
  • Establish an update cadence and change control for the register.

How to Use

  • Drive communication plans: who needs what information, when, and how.
  • Plan engagement actions to move from current to desired engagement levels.
  • Prepare for meetings using stakeholder concerns, influence, and decision roles.
  • Monitor changes in attitude or power after milestones, changes, or issues.
  • Escalate and adjust strategies for high-power or high-interest stakeholders.
  • Align risk responses with stakeholder risks and opportunities.
  • Coordinate with change management and training plans for impacted groups.
  • Report summary insights to governance while protecting sensitive details.

Ownership & Update Cadence

  • Owner: Project manager (or product owner) maintains; business analyst or PMO supports.
  • Access: Restricted to the core team and governance as needed.
  • Cadence: Review at least each iteration or monthly in predictive projects.
  • Triggers: New stakeholders, organizational changes, scope changes, major decisions, issues, or risks.
  • Versioning: Record update dates and maintain change history.

Example Rows

  • Sponsor — Power: High; Interest: High; Current/Desired: Supportive/Leading; Preferences: Weekly brief, email; Strategy: Executive summary plus key risks and decisions.
  • Operations Manager — Power: Medium; Interest: High; Current/Desired: Neutral/Supportive; Preferences: Biweekly workshop; Strategy: Show operational impacts and transition plan.
  • Regulator — Power: High; Interest: Medium; Current/Desired: Neutral/Supportive; Preferences: Formal reports quarterly; Strategy: Early compliance review and documented evidence.

PMP Example Question

Midway through execution, a new regulatory stakeholder is identified who could influence approvals. What should the project manager do first?

  1. Send the next status report to inform all stakeholders.
  2. Add the stakeholder to the register and assess influence, interest, and engagement needs.
  3. Escalate the issue to the sponsor as a project risk without further analysis.
  4. Update the communications plan only after the next phase gate.

Correct Answer: B — Add the stakeholder to the register and assess influence, interest, and engagement needs.

Explanation: First, update the stakeholder register and analyze the stakeholder. Then adjust engagement and communications plans based on the analysis.

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