ANSWER

Most Business Analysts know that identifying project stakeholders is important.  But how do you identify them and know with any degree of certainty that you haven’t missed someone important?  After all, if you overlook a key stakeholder then the project is likely to suffer later due to scope change or a lack of acceptance by the business users.

To start, the business analyst should list the current project team members and identify each team member’s functional manager.  Many of the functional managers will likely be stakeholders.  Also, an examination of the org chart can be helpful. By identifying which areas of the business are impacted by the project and then identifying people in leadership positions within those areas, the Business Analyst can ferret out stakeholders that might be overlooked. 

So far, we’ve mostly described stakeholders directly impacted by the project.  The business analyst also needs to be sure to consider other interfacing entities and organizations such as vendors or government agencies. 

Finally, the business analyst doesn’t need to rely solely on themselves.  Instead, use the collective knowledge of previously identified stakeholders.  A short survey can be used to gather from stakeholders who else they believe need to be involved.  While just an example, the following questions can be used to help uncover a stakeholder that might have been overlooked since different groups within the organization may have a different perspectives.

• Who is requesting the project deliverable?
• Who is the champion of the project?
• Who controls the budget for the project?
• Who is currently responsible for the business process that may be impacted by the project?
• Who is currently responsible for the systems that may be impacted or replaced by the project?
• Whose job is directly impacted by the delivery of the project?   

The business analyst can ask other questions. But realize that too many questions typically result in lower survey completion rates.

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Chris Adams
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