stakeholder-alignment

Context

Use in Phase 1 to establish the stakeholder landscape before any recommendations are made. Since co-hr has no separate communications role, the Change Management Partner leads message development directly from these outputs rather than handing off to another agent.

When to Use

• At the start of any consulting engagement before recommendations are drafted
• When navigating complex organizational dynamics with multiple affected groups
• When communication planning requires audience segmentation
• When leadership alignment or resistance risks need to be surfaced early

Execution Steps

1. Stakeholder Identification: List all individuals and groups affected by the engagement

2. Stakeholder Profiling: For each stakeholder document:

   • Role and organizational level
   • Key concerns and interests
   • Current stance (Champion / Supporter / Neutral / Skeptic / Blocker)
   • Preferred communication channel and frequency
   • Influence level (High/Medium/Low) and Interest level (High/Medium/Low)

3. Influence-Interest Matrix: Plot stakeholders in 2x2 grid:

   • High Influence / High Interest → Manage closely
   • High Influence / Low Interest → Keep satisfied
   • Low Influence / High Interest → Keep informed
   • Low Influence / Low Interest → Monitor

4. Resistance Analysis: For skeptics and blockers, document:

   • Root cause of resistance
   • What would change their stance
   • Risk level if not addressed

5. Communication Strategy: For each quadrant, define:

   • Message theme
   • Channel
   • Frequency
   • Owner

6. Message Development: The Change Management Partner develops the messaging directly from the strategy matrix above — co-hr has no separate communications-lead role to hand off to.

Output Format

• Stakeholder Map (table): Name, Role, Stance, Influence, Interest, Key Concerns, Preferred Channel
• Resistance Risk Register: Stakeholder, Resistance Cause, Risk Level, Mitigation Action
• Communication Strategy Matrix: Quadrant, Message Theme, Channel, Frequency, Owner

Related Skills

• org-readiness-assessment