How to identify your Stakeholder?

First, make a list of the stakeholders for your project. Get specific—not just “someone from product development.” Find out precise names and titles.

Then, determine what type of stakeholder each person is. We categorize using these seven types (one person can be assigned to more than one category):

Sponsor:

This is the person who gets the recognition or takes the fall. There’s usually only one.

Financial decision-makers: Again, there’s usually only one, but there could be more. These are the people who decide whether your project (or parts of your project) gets funded.

Strategic decision-makers: These are the people who have a problem that your project can or should solve. They are usually vocal and can approve/veto your work.

Champions: These are the people you can count on to evangelize the importance of content and content strategy.

Detailers:

 While these people don’t have official veto power, they can stop the project in its tracks (intentionally or unintentionally). They are often outside the obvious pool of project stakeholders but impacted by the project outcomes.

Influencers:

These people have opinions and insight that should be considered, but they don’t have veto power.

Implementers:

These are the people who are responsible for putting your strategy into action. They often have very specific knowledge or expertise.