SMSC Diary (Week 7): What is Actually at Stake
In class this week, we discussed what it means to be a “stakeholder” in regards to a cause, initiative, or any other prospective project. At the core, a stakeholder is an individual or group of individuals that will be directly or indirectly impacted by a decision, and often will have decision-making power in the situation. However, in the real world, the roles of different stakeholders fluctuate within and across projects.
To better understand the role of stakeholders, we discussed prospective interest groups in regards to a specific case study – the Northern Bobwhite Quail (NOBO) Initiative. Justin Folks, a Wildlife Biologist for the USDA gave us the run down on the action plan goals for the NOBO initiative:
Generate funding to support quail habitat restoration
Educate the public on the status of quail
Improve quail populations
Establish early successional habitat for quail
Increase statewide recreation related to quail
Provide quail management demonstration areas
With this criterion in mind, our class then generated a list of 26 possible stakeholders. The 26 were then grouped into 11 functioning units. Then, the 11 units were then evaluated by four groups, in regards to their their influence in the decision making process (more or less) and whether they would be more or less impacted upon as a result of the implementation of the NOBO Initiative. My group’s chart (right) illustrates the type of analysis performed.
Once ranking were assigned, each group then transcribed their decisions on the white board at the front of the class, and visible patterns began to emerge across groups. Many students believed the private landowners and farmers should have the most decision-making power in this process, as they own a majority of the land that would be impacted. However, many groups also disagreed on the placement of units such as education, HOA’s, and developers.
This demonstration illustrated the multiple perspectives involved in assessing who really has a stake in a project. Our activity only lasted a few hours, but real projects spend weeks determining which stakeholders are most invested in their work. Extensive research must be done in order to narrow stakeholder units, so that project managers are prepared to target the people or groups that are will allow them to enact their project or plan. I found this analysis technique very interesting and useful for prioritizing stakeholder groups. I also see where this technique could be useful in prioritizing other aspects of research projects such as where to invest the most time and money in order to yield the greatest return.