For consultants getting to know the client's people
Stakeholder Analysis Template and Example
Map stakeholders by power and interest, and record their stance now and needed, what each side needs, concerns, an owner and how often to engage.
Keep satisfied · high power, low interest
- Dan Whitcombe, Compliance OfficerNeutral now. Signs off by 11 Dec, so managed closely until then.
- Lena Ortiz, IT DirectorResistant now. Said her team has no room before April.
Manage closely · high power, high interest
- Maria Okafor, COO and sponsorSupportive now, and needs to lead. Weekly one-to-one.
- Priya Shah, Head of Member ServicesSupportive. Asked twice about January workload.
Keep informed · low power, low interest
- Online banking vendorUnaware. Reached only through IT's change process.
Consult with · low power, high interest
- Branch managers at the two pilot branchesNeutral. “January is when half my team takes leave.”
- Member service reps, 18 peopleUnaware. Two asked if the project is about cutting staff.
What you'll get
Power, interest, stance and an engagement plan for every stakeholder
- A stakeholder sheet filled in with a worked client example
- Power and interest scales, and the grid explained in words
- Stance now and needed, an owner and how often to engage
Before and after
Your notes in. A stakeholder map out.
Interview notes, 4 and 5 Nov. Maria Okafor (COO) is the sponsor and keen; the board keeps asking about member growth. Priya Shah runs Member Services, her team is two people short, worried about January. Dan Whitcombe in compliance: "We are not going back to the examiners with gaps in our files." Hasn't seen our changes.
Maria Okafor (COO): power 5, interest 5. Manage closely. Stance now: Supportive. Concerns: the board keeps asking about member growth. Priya Shah (Member Services): power 4, interest 5. Manage closely. Concerns: her team is two people short, and January workload. Owner: [owner]. Dan Whitcombe (Compliance): power 4, interest [to score]. Grid: [to place]. Stance now: [unknown]. Concerns: "We are not going back to the examiners with gaps in our files." To confirm: Who on our team owns each relationship? What does Dan need to see before he signs off?
Every score and stance is proposed from your notes, and anything they don't show stays in brackets.
Why it works
What is a stakeholder analysis, and how do you map stakeholders?
This stakeholder analysis template is a sheet with one row for each person who can affect your project or will be affected by it. Each row records their power and interest, where they stand now and where you need them, and how you'll engage them. A stakeholder map places the same people on a power/interest grid. The UK Civil Service Analysis Function uses that grid to set a contact level for each person.
The guide shows how to fill each column and how to score power and interest from 1 to 5, then describes the grid in words. Each row also records what you need from the person and what they need from the project. It holds their concerns in their own words, one owner for the relationship, and how often to engage. The sheet opens filled in with eight stakeholder rows from an invented credit union project, so you can see a finished map first.
The map holds your judgements about named people, so it's a private working document for your team, not a client deliverable. Under UK data protection law, an opinion about a person can be their personal data, and people can ask for a copy. Download both free, or paste your org notes into River for a first pass. If your notes are long transcripts, pull out the themes first with interview synthesis. Then settle who does what with the RACI matrix template, and who hears what with the communication plan template.
What lands in your doc
What's inside the stakeholder analysis template
- A filled stakeholder sheet
Eight stakeholder rows from an invented client project, across 14 columns, to swap for your own. - Power and interest scales
What each score from 1 to 5 means, so two people on your team score someone the same way. - The grid in words
The four positions on the power/interest grid, what each one means and when to move someone up. - Stance now and needed
Five levels from unaware to leading, and how to decide whose gap to close first. - How and how often to engage
A usual approach and rhythm for each grid position, with an owner for every relationship. - A private-map note
Why the map stays with your team, and how to write about people as if they might read it.
How it works
From notes to stakeholder map
Open the template
Click Edit with AI. The stakeholder sheet and its guide open in River, with the worked example in place.
Paste your notes
Optional. Paste org or interview notes, and River adds a row per person and places each one on the grid.
Check every guess
Confirm or change each proposed score and stance, then fill in the owners and gaps left in brackets.
Engage and review
Work through the plan for each person, and re-score after each milestone or steering committee.
Questions consultants ask
Common questions
What is a stakeholder analysis?
A stakeholder analysis is a record of everyone who can affect a project or is affected by it, with each person's power, interest, stance and engagement plan. On a client project, it tells you whose support you need, whose sign-off could stall the work, and who should hear what, and when.
What's the difference between a stakeholder analysis and a stakeholder map?
The analysis is the table: one row per person, with scores, stance, needs, concerns and an engagement plan. The map is the picture: the same people placed on a power/interest grid. This template keeps the analysis in the sheet and the map in the guide, and both change when you re-score someone.
How does the power/interest grid work?
Score each person's power and interest, then place them in one of four boxes. The Analysis Function's guidance names them. Manage closely is high power and high interest, and keep satisfied is high power with low interest. Consult with is low power with high interest, and keep informed is low on both. Each box sets how closely you engage.
When should you do a stakeholder analysis?
At the start of the project, once the objectives are agreed, which is when the Analysis Function's guidance says mapping should happen. On consulting work, that's usually kickoff week. Then review it at each milestone, whenever someone joins, leaves or changes their stance, and at least once a month.
Should I share the stakeholder map with my client?
Share the engagement plan, but keep the map private. It holds your read on named people, and under UK law an opinion about someone can be their personal data, accurate or not. Write every cell as if the person might read it: what they said or did, with the date, and never a judgement of their character.
What do current and needed stance mean?
Current stance is where someone stands today: unaware, resistant, neutral, supportive or leading. Needed stance is where the project needs them to be, and by when. The gap shows where to spend your time. Close the biggest gaps among the most powerful people first, using what each person needs from the project.
Can River fill it in from my notes?
Yes. Paste your org or interview notes, and River replaces the example with one row per person. It proposes each score and stance from what your notes show and quotes concerns in the person's own words. Anything your notes don't cover stays in brackets, and it never invents a name or a title.
Your next step
More for your project
Know who can make or break the project
Open the sheet with a worked example and the grid explained, or paste your org or interview notes for a first pass.