Stakeholder Analysis: RACI Charts and the Power/Interest Grid
Who can make or break a project, how to map them, and how to decide who gets a say versus who just gets an update.
Beginner
TopNotchNote
Notes that matter
why stakeholders decide whether a project "succeeds"
A stakeholder is anyone who can affect the project or is affected by it — a sponsor, an end user, a regulator, a team whose workflow changes because of what you build. A technically flawless project that ignores a stakeholder with real influence can still fail, because that stakeholder can slow-walk approvals, withdraw support, or simply refuse to adopt the result.
Identifying stakeholders is not a one-time task at kickoff — new ones surface as the project moves through planning and execution, especially anyone whose team gets affected by a scope change.
the raci chart: who does what
A RACI chart assigns one of four roles to each stakeholder for each key task or decision:
- Responsible — does the work.
- Accountable — owns the outcome and signs off; there should be exactly one accountable person per task.
- Consulted — gives input before a decision is made.
- Informed — told after the fact, no input required.
| Task | PM | Sponsor | Legal | End users |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approve budget | C | A/R | I | I |
| Draft vendor contract | C | I | A/R | — |
| Sign off on final UI | R | A | — | C |
the power/interest grid: who to prioritize
Not every stakeholder needs the same level of attention. Plotting each one on a grid of power (their ability to affect the project) against interest (how much they care about the outcome) sorts them into four groups:
| Quadrant | Strategy |
|---|---|
| High power, high interest | Manage closely — frequent, detailed updates and early involvement in decisions |
| High power, low interest | Keep satisfied — brief, high-level updates; don't overwhelm them |
| Low power, high interest | Keep informed — they can be useful advocates even without formal authority |
| Low power, low interest | Monitor — minimal effort, watch for changes in their position |
a short example
A university switching its course-registration system has a registrar's office (high power, high interest — manage closely), the university president (high power, low interest — a monthly summary is enough), individual professors (low power, high interest — keep them informed, they will complain loudly if surprised), and the campus print shop that occasionally prints old registration forms (low power, low interest — monitor only).
practical notes
Build the RACI chart before the first disagreement about who signs off on what — retroactively assigning accountability after a conflict is far harder than agreeing on it up front.
A stakeholder's position on the power/interest grid can shift mid-project — a quiet department can suddenly gain interest (and influence) the moment the project touches their budget.