Stakeholder Analysis

features:
timedifficultypeoplephasetype
short/mediumstraightforwardresearcherdesignbroadening
intro:

The stakeholder analysis provides an overview of relevant people, organizations or industries who may influence or is influenced by an innovation. Map the stakeholders and develop an understanding of their role and perspectives related to the innovation you are working on. This helps you to better understand technological requirements and impacts, provides directions to increase acceptance of the innovation, and may indicate new opportunities.

steps:
  • list all stakeholders
    1
    As an inspiration, you may consider which groups of people or organizations are involved in the use, production, supply, maintenance, distribution, disposal, financing, regulation, or standardization of the technology. Or you may distinguish between enactors and selectors, as these typically have rather different views on a technology:

    1. Enactors are stakeholders who are actively supporting your technology: Technology developers, researchers, investors, shareholders, research institutes or clusters, technology firms, industrial partners, suppliers
    2. Selectors are stakeholders who see your technology as one of many to choose from: users, policy makers, funding agencies, investors, regulatory bodies (e.g., FDA, EMA), critical consumers, NGOs
    3. Stakeholders with a less direct role, but who may be affected by an innovation, and who may decide to take an active position for or against a technology, or who’s interests remain more passive, should be considered as well: affected residents, community organizations, special interest groups, excluded users or users of alternative technologies, competitors, people affected down the supply chain or by disposal, stakeholders without a voice (nature, the Northern Sea, an animal species etc.)

    You may want to create a figure that shows the stakeholders and their relations.

  • position and perspective
    2
    Get in contact with the most relevant stakeholders to better understand their perspective on this particular innovation. If there is no better information available, you may imagine yourself in the position of the stakeholders and anticipate on their perspective with respect to your technology. You can search for available information that helps to better understand the role and needs of a particular group with regards to a technology, relevant statements, actual activities or explicit strategies.
  • mapping
    3
    Which stakeholders may appreciate certain features of the innovation or have a critical perspective on them? Who may affect your innovation positively or negatively? Who’s perspective and knowledge do you need to know better to develop the innovation, who should you involve in the process? Get in contact with these stakeholders and think about how you can involve them in the development process.