Interreg IIIB North Sea Programme

Lead Partner Seminar

Communication & Publicity

Stakeholder Analysis
Reasons for communication e.g. mainstreaming
Cooperation is not only a matter of generating new knowledge but also of generating
practical applications from knowledge.

Stakeholders: A definition
Put simply, a project’s stakeholders are:

ƒ The people and organisations implementing the project

ƒ The people and organisations who could be positively or negatively affected by
the results of the project

Each of these groups can and must be sub-divided in order to provide useful input to
project implementation and communication strategies. This section considers the
importance of stakeholders and effective stakeholder analysis in communication.

Stakeholder Analysis
Diagrams! Who should/shouldn’t be targeted at project level (e.g. Commission)

INTERREG requirements mean that the effective identification of stakeholder groups

is both complex and essential. On the one hand, the cross-sectoral approach
required by INTERREG means that projects must take steps to identify and include a
wide range of stakeholders. The inter-related but different needs of each stakeholder
group require that a detailed communication strategy is put in place if communication
activities are to be effective. On the other hand, INTERREG funding comes from a
number of different sources and project partners must therefore target
communication back along a much more extended chain of project sponsors than is
usual. They must also take care to address local, regional and national stakeholders
while also contributing to communication on the transnational level.

The INTERREG context therefore creates two key requirements. Firstly, a systematic
approach to stakeholders will be required if communication is to be targeted
effectively. Secondly, Lead Partners need to play a coordinating role in the
communication work of the other partners if the whole process is not to descend into
chaos.

A stakeholder analysis is basically a two-stage process. Firstly the relevant

categories of stakeholder need to be identified. Then specific people within each
category need to be identified along with contact information so that communication
can be targeted. It should, however, be noted that this is a process that continues
throughout the life of the project. As project work develops new categories of relevant
stakeholders will appear. People will also, of course, move between and within
organisations and contact information therefore needs to be regularly updated.

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 Identify categories Identify individuals

When defining categories, stakeholders can usefully be divided into internal and
external groups.

Internal stakeholders

The internal group most obviously contains everyone who is working directly on the
project. It is important, however, that the internal group is not limited to these people.
Two common project problems illustrate well the need for a more thorough analysis
of the internal stakeholder group. On the one hand, projects often experience
administrative problems when they need to work with other parts of their own
organisation or when they need to cooperate with other regional or national
institutions. Problems range from difficulties in securing the necessary staff and other
resources, to conflicts between financial systems. All of these difficulties can delay or
even derail a project.

The other common problem is to do with the mainstreaming of project results.

Mainstreaming is the process by which project results are adopted as part of the
standard systems and procedures of an organisation. Such changes operate on two
different levels. Some changes require only that an organisation implements new
elements in its existing way of working (e.g. using a new test for measuring air
quality). If the new system or procedure can be demonstrated to be better, such
change can be expected to be relatively easy to implement. Other changes, however,
require a change in the whole culture of an organisation (e.g. persuading employees
to use public transport rather than private cars). This is a much longer term process
that requires continued communication and it can be expected that some resistance
will need to be overcome. Neither process, however, has a chance of succeeding
without the support of the relevant stakeholders within the organisation who are
willing to promote and implement project results. Furthermore, INTERREG only
multiples these difficulties, as projects often work with several different organisations
simultaneously and all of them must be persuaded to adopt project
recommendations.

The following is a breakdown of some of the groups that should be considered as

internal stakeholders. It is not exhaustive and every project will have to consider its
own situation when conducting its own analysis. It is also important to stress that not
everyone needs to be told about every aspect of your project and some of the
stakeholders you identify may perhaps never receive any communication from you.
The purpose of the analysis is to ensure that nobody is forgotten and to give you an
overview of your different communication needs and possibilities.

You also need to remember that every partner will have a different list. Partners
should, however, share the contents of these lists both to allow the Lead Partner to
develop a master list and ensure that there are no overlaps, and because partners
may provide useful ideas for further categories of stakeholders or better contact
information within a targeted organisation. Internal stakeholders are essential for
successful implementation and for mainstreaming project results.

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 How high up the internal organisation can you go?

Multiple stakeholders create multiple groups of internal stakeholders

Internal Stakeholders

In department
Partner 1

Lead Partner Partner 2 In organisation

1. Upper
Partner 3 management

2. Project sponsor In supervising

bodies

3. Other groups in
the organisation

4. Team members

5. Consultants

6. Project partners

1. Upper management: This key group can include many different sub-groups
depending on the nature of the organisation involved. Certainly, it must include
the people that project managers in each partner organisation report to, the heads
of units whose work could be affected by project results and the decision-makers
who will be able to approve the adoption of new measures. Some organisations
may also be ultimately responsible to supervising bodies in ministries/regional
administrations etc. and these groups must also be kept involved.
2. Project sponsor: Those who provide funding for the project obviously have a keen
interest in its progress. The INTERREG situation is again complex because each
project will have multiple providers of funding (including those who provide in-kind
contributions). ALSO SUB-PARTNERS + HOW HIGH UP ORGANISATION.
NCPs
3. Other groups in the organisation: The finance unit is the most obvious example
but organisations may also need to call on legal, human resources,
communication etc. skills. Ensure therefore that such groups are aware of the
project, its requirements and the timescales involved.
4. Team members:
5. Consultants: Many INTERREG projects make use of consultants and other
external experts.
6. Project partners: It is essential for the effective implementation of the project that
partners communicate regularly and not just at formal partnership
meetings/conferences etc.

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External stakeholders

The external stakeholders can be considered as anyone outside the implementing

organisations who could be affected by the project’s results. STAKEHOLDER
INVOLVEMENT

Moving beyond stakeholder groups

It is not sufficient to identify the relevant groups. Named individuals need to be

identified within each group and more than one person may be required for any
organisation or department. The selection of these individuals will depend on the role
that they are to play in the project and the requirements in terms of knowledge,
authority and level of involvement that this creates.

Professional associations
(groups of professionals who
could influence or be
Collaborators (other
influenced by your project)
organisations and projects
that you may work with for
part of your project)
End-users (the general public,
fellow professionals, planners Regulators (those issuing
etc.) regulations and standards
governing your area of
work)
Business and
trade Interreg projects
organisations in other
programme
External Stakeholders areas

Local / Regional /
National The public (all those
European institutions who might be
administrations
and organisations influenced by or
and politicians
NGOs interested in your
Educational
project)
institutions

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