What are steps to be followed while using stakeholder Onion Diagram?

Following are steps to be followed while using Stakeholder Onion Diagram:

Step 1

Draw the center (smallest) circle. This represents the product or solution that is being delivered by the project. Note that at the beginning this can be a bit fuzzy if the goal or even scope have not been denied yet. That’s OK as you can create the diagram later as you gain more knowledge.

Step 2

Draw the 2nd layer (the next circle). This represents the Business System and entails not just the product, but those stakeholders who interact directly with it. Add stakeholder roles to this circle to indicate who those stakeholders are that interact directly with the solution.

Step 3

Add the 3rd layer of the diagram (the next circle). This layer represents the business or organization that hosts, controls, or generally controls the project solution. This layer of the onion diagram is populated with what Ian Alexander calls the “functional beneficiaries” of the system. [1] These are the other stakeholders within the organization who may not interact directly with the solution who benefit from it. Add these stakeholders within the 3rd layer to get a result like that below.

Step 4

Add the 4th layer (the next circle). This layer represents the wider environment in which the rm operates. This layer is populated with stakeholders who are outside the rm but who are still important. These include regulators, clients, suppliers, noncoal beneficiaries such as stockholders, the public (if there is a public impact), the media, the similar entities. It is important to note that most of the project team, including developers would likely be contained in this last circle. Although they are often “within” the rm, they are usually not functional beneficiaries of the solution and are not usually involved in ongoing maintenance and operations of the solution. If any of the project team can be considered functional beneficiaries or will be involved in ongoing operations or maintenance, they should be located within one of the 2nd or 3rd rings of the onion. This result is a diagram like the one below.

Step 5

 At this point, a basic onion diagram contains a fair amount of information. The last step is to add relationship arrows to the diagram. These are usually displayed as dashed lines with a direction indicator showing the direction of relationship. Stakeholders can have relationships with the previous layer of the diagram, or with other specific stakeholders.