Examples are groups such as purchasing, legal, human resources, regulatory or govern-
mental compliance groups, safety, systems groups, and so on. Rather than considering
these groups as roadblocks, you need to understand that they are rightfully trying to
uphold the standards of the organization.- Coach stakeholder(s):
They help you understand and work within the informal stakeholder system.
The most unusual stakeholders, these people are particularly needed if you work at
arm’s length from other stakeholder groups (e.g., from head office to field). They can
come from any level of the organization and be any person, from highly-placed exec-
utives who may coach you, right through to an office clerk. The role of coaches is to
help you and your project get approval. Their basic question is: “How can we get the job
done?”These people will help you navigate around obstacles in other stakeholder sys-
tems, and help you understand unwritten rules: “how things work around here.” They
will also give you blunt feedback about what is and is not working. The more complex
the project, the more valuable coaches become.
TYPES OF STAKEHOLDER MAPS
Stakeholder maps can range from simple box-and-arrow arrangements to very creative draw-
ings. Keep in mind the issue is clarity of stakeholders and how to deal with them. Creative
maps can lead to creative discussions and actions. Henry Mintzberg in his book Mintzberg on
Managementdrew a very creative map of an organization.
SECTION 5 TOOLS FORLEADINGCHANGE 157
Reprinted with permission from Henry Mintzberg’s Mintzberg on Management.The Free Press, a Division of Macmillan, Inc., 1989, p.100.