Stakeholder Engagementin the context of
Conflict Analysis and Intervention
Sharon McCarthy
Stakeholder• A person, group or organization that has interest in or
concern about a proposed action.• Anyone who may impact or be impacted by an organization’s
actions, objectives or policies.
*An action can include a policy, project, plan, program or procedure.
Stakeholder (cont’d)
• Primary stakeholder – someone directly or immediately affected, positively or negatively, by an action.
• Secondary stakeholder – someone indirectly or gradually affected, positively or negatively, by an action.
• Key stakeholders – have significant influence upon or importance within an organization. (They can belong to the first two groups.)
Engagement
• Understanding stakeholders’ views, taking them into consideration, being accountable to them, and using the information gleaned in decisions.
Stakeholder Engagement
• A continuum of interaction that reflects the degree of influence stakeholders have in decision making.
• The formal and informal ways of staying connected to the parties who have an actual or potential interest in, or can affect an action.
• The process of building long-term, collaborative, mutually beneficial relationships.
• A form of participatory decision making.
Spectrum of Engagement/Participation
InformTo provide balanced
information to assist with
understanding the problem,
alternatives, opportunities,
and/or solutions.
ConsultTo obtain feedback
on analysis, alternatives and/or
decisions.
InvolveTo work directly
with stakeholders throughout the
process to ensure their concerns are
consistently understood and
considered.
Engage/CollaborateTo partner with stakeholders in
each aspect of the decision including
the development of alternatives, and
the identification of a preferred
solution.
EmpowerTo place final
decision-making with stakeholders.
Spectrum of Stakeholder Engagement
Public Involvement Continuum
History of Stakeholder Engagement• Modern stakeholder thinking arose in the 1930s in the midst of legal debate about
the responsibilities of corporations to their stockholders and other constituencies.• As health, safety, environment and community relations evolved, other
stakeholders groups were included.• The Stanford Research Institute is often credited with first using the modern
definition of stakeholder in the 1960s. • The concept was fused with management thinking in the 1980s with the
publication of Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach, R. Edward Freeman (1984).
• In the 1990s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability were receiving more attention from the general public and corporations.
• From 2000 onward there has been a gradual recognition of the distinction between stakeholder management/responsibility and stakeholder responsiveness/building relationships.
A Plan, a Process, or an Approach
• An engagement plan can- refer to the “communications” plans that support
a stakeholder process;- entail a plan, do, check, and act model.• An engagement process can flow from a
stakeholder plan; engagement plans can flow from an engagement process.
• An engagement approach can refer to the engagement plan and process.
Steps in Stakeholder Engagement
• Rationale• Desired Outcomes • Stakeholder Identification• Stakeholder Analysis• Interest/Issues Identification• The Stakeholder Engagement Strategy
Rationale for Stakeholder Engagement
• public expectations• regulatory requirements• history of engaging stakeholders• stakeholder management or stakeholder
responsiveness (relationship building)
Desired Outcomes
• Desired outcomes are the overall aims of an engagement process.
• Outcomes are more specific than “purpose” and are a clear statement of exactly what is sought from a process.
Stakeholder Identification
• Who has an interest in the current situation?• Who has history with the current situation,
e.g., based on locality, type of action, or the roots of a conflict?
• Who can influence the outcome?• Who has not been identified?
Stakeholder Identification (cont’d)
• Brainstorm on an initial list.• Collect names from people who are active in
the community of interest.• Consult with organizations that have been
involved with similar efforts or who work with the population in the area of concern.
• Solicit further ideas from stakeholders who have been identified.
Stakeholder Mapping
• Determine the relationship between stakeholders.
• Determine the strength of each relationship and its basis, e.g., historical, geographic.
• Determine whether there are groups with similar or overlapping interests.
Stakeholder Mapping (cont’d)
• Primary care providers
• Health and human service organizations
• Community volunteers/activists
• Policy makers and agencies
Advocacy groups
People at risk
Residents of a particular geographic
area.
A population defined by
race or ethnicity.
Stakeholder Mapping (cont’d)
Stakeholder Mapping (cont’d)
Power, Legitimacy and Urgency• Latent stakeholders (groups 1,2,& 3) subdivided
into dormant, discretionary or demanding stakeholders.
• Expectant stakeholders (groups 4,5,& 6) subdivided into dominant, dangerous or dependent stakeholders.
• Definitive stakeholders (group 7) have all three characteristics and often take the most attention.
Stakeholder Analysis
A process of systematically gathering and analyzing qualitative information to determine whose interests should be taken into account when- developing and/or implementing a policy,
project, plan, program or procedure- attempting to build relationships absent a
proposed action
Community Profiles
• Community profiles provide a summary of the history, present conditions, and anticipated future of an area/situation.
• Community profiles typically include population demographics, economic and social history, existing amenities and facilities, recent changes and future plans.
• For stakeholder engagement with an international focus population demographics and economic and social history are the most important aspects.
Value-Focused Thinking
Values-focused thinking• defining and structuring fundamental values in
terms of objectives and using the objectives to guide and integrate decision making
• making decisions in relation to objectives that derive from stakeholder values
• contrasts with alternative-focused thinking
Value-focused Thinking (cont’d)
Criteria used to evaluate people, behavior, experiences
and objects
Reflected in attitudes, beliefs, feelings and perceptions and as such form a critical component
of the decisions we make
Can be endemic, found across cultures, or embedded within a
particular culture.
Principles used for evaluation that help with choosing among
various possible goals.
Values
Value-focused Thinking (cont’d)
Thinking about Values
Creating alternatives
Uncovering hidden
objectives
Evaluating alternatives
Improving communication
Facilitating involvement in
multiple-stakeholder
decisions
Guiding information collection
Interconnecting decisions
Guiding strategic thinking
Identifying decision
opportunities
Stakeholder Analysis (cont’d)
High Influence
Low Interest
High InterestHigh Influence
Low Influence
Low Interest
High Interest Low Influence
Influ
ence
Interest
Stakeholder Analysis (cont’d)
Communicate High Level Engage
Monitor Keep InformedInflu
ence
Interest
Stakeholder Analysis (cont’d)
• Delineate a geographic sphere of influence.• Delineate impact zones where different types of
environmental and social impacts may occur.• Note those groups who will be most directly
affected within the impact area.• Include in the analysis groups and organizations
not adversely affected but whose interests define them as stakeholders.
Interest/Issues Identification
• Interest/issues identification often occurs in concert with stakeholder analysis.
• Interests and issues are most readily identified by asking stakeholders:– What is important to you?– Why is this important?
The Stakeholder Engagement Strategy
• Prioritize who needs to be contacted and the method(s) of contact.
• Detail the schedule of activities and the decision making process.
• Identify aspects integral to the strategy:– the need for a Terms of Reference– the inclusion of a Chair, facilitators(s) and/or
mediator– representativeness of stakeholders
Requirements to Engage
• The Ontario Electricity Act (1998), Sec. 13.2 specifies requirements for stakeholder input.
• Guidelines for federal officials to fulfill the duty to consult and accommodate Aboriginal interests.
• The International Labour Organization (ILO) 169 on Indigenous and Tribal People outlines consultation requirements.
Enabling Conditions for Stakeholder Engagement
A successful stakeholder engagement process is helped along when the parties• possess a cultural affinity• recognize each other’s legitimacy• dedicate time to building trust• are willing to accept incremental gains
Enabling Conditions (cont’d)
• There exists the motivation of all parties to engage one another in dialogue.
• There is articulated and agreed upon existence of a goal(s) that can only be accomplished through the participation of all parties.
• Representatives of each party must have the internal organizational capacity to act.
International Standards for Reporting on Stakeholder Engagement
In recent years, international reporting standards for business have begun to include requirements for reporting on stakeholder activities and performance.• Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) – sets
standards for corporate governance and stakeholder engagement including corporate codes of conduct and public reporting.
• FTSE4Good Index Series – a series of benchmark indices for socially responsible investors.
International Standards for Reporting on Stakeholder Engagement (cont’d)
• UN Global Compact – commits signatory companies to support and respect the protection of internationally recognized human rights and make sure they are not complicit in human rights abuses.
• Credit 360 – a web based data management system that facilitates data collection and aggregation for reporting and communication purposes.
• REACT – an online record of research, engagement and consultation exercises undertaken by local authorities across a district.
Concluding Comments
• At its best, stakeholder engagement enables cooperation and collaboration.
• The timing for stakeholder engagement depends on the situation and the availability of information.
• Stakeholder engagement is often undertaken to help avoid or resolve conflict, yet, conflict can raise awareness and function as an important check on a situation.
Concluding Comments (cont’d)
• Power imbalances go hand in hand with stakeholder engagement.
• The conclusion of a stakeholder engagement strategy does not always signal the end of a conflict/dispute.
Resources• International Finance Cooperation. Stakeholder Engagement: A
Good Practice Handbook for Companies Doing Business in Emerging Markets.
• The KU Work Group, Community Tool Box, University of Kansas Work Group for Community Health and Development http://ctb.ku.edu/en
• International Association for Public Participation http://www.iap2.org/
• The Global Reporting Initiative, include indicators for labour practices, decent work and human rights www.globalreporting.org
• Dow Jones Sustainability Index www.sustainability-indices.com