Lesson 5: Stakeholders in policy making
and Administrative governance: Their
role and influence

What and who are “Stakeholders”?
1
2
3
A stakeholder is a person who has something
to gain or lose through the outcomes of a
planning process or project. In many circles
these are called interest groups and they can
have a powerful bearing on the outcomes of
political processes.
The term refers to persons, groups or
organizations that must somehow be taken
into account by leaders, managers and frontline staff.
‘Any group or individual who can affect or [be]
affected by the achievement of an
organization's objectives’.

What are they?
When we think of stakeholders, it is possible
to list many examples, but the ones that
usually come to mind are shareholders,
management, employees, trade unions,
customers, suppliers, and communities.
However, larger and more complex
organizations
can have many more stakeholders than
these. Compare, for example, the different
complexities of a small organization, such as
a corner shop or street trader, with a large
international organization such as a major

Importance of Stakeholders
1.Stakeholders are the
recipient of policy.
2.The improvement in the
lives of Stakeholders
determine success or
failure of public policy.

Importance of Stakeholders
S2
S1
S7
PUBLIC
POLICY
S3
S6
S4
S5

Importance of Stakeholders
(In the Philippine Context)
s1
Policy
makers
especially
those who
are elected
must listen to
and please
the
stakeholders
or else…
Policy
s2
s3
Rejection of policy= No
vote
Rejection of Policy= No
vote
Rejection of Policy= No
Vote

Importance of Stakeholders
(In the Philippine Context)
In the Philippines, Stakeholders are
the ticket of policy makers to stay in
office.
Hence, policy makers in Congress and
the Executive formulate policies that
appeal to certain stakeholders.
For example:
• Cynthia Villar’s campaign focuses on
livelihood projects to solve
unemployment.

Importance of Stakeholders
(In the Philippine Context)
• PNOY’s Tuwid na Daan
targets the call of the people
for a cleaner government.
• Jason Gonzales’
Pedestrianization ordinance
targets the enhancement of
the lives of the people in the
downtown area.

The Influence of Stakeholders
Stakeholders can utilize many ways to influence
policy. In business, they can choose to boycott
establishments that will not heed their requests
or suggestions.
In public policy they can:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Lobby
Call for conferences
Support or advocate for non-support of a policy
Support or advocate for the non-support of policy makers
Rally

The relationship between
stakeholders and policy makers
In order for business to prosper there must be a
reciprocal relationship between the stakeholders
and the business.
Example:
Wal-Mart, the biggest retailer in the US,
constantly engages in stakeholder consultation
and surveys before they decide to take in and
launch new products in their shelves

The relationship between
stakeholders and policy makers
In the context of public policy there is an ideal
two-way relationship between the policy
makers and the people (stakeholders).
Stakeholders should contribute to inputs in
policy formulation and should be given ample
time, efficient and effective ways to evaluate the
policy.
But that does not happen all the time.

The relationship between
stakeholders and policy makers
IDEAL

The relationship between
stakeholders and policy makers
REAL

Categorizing Stakeholders
Stakeholders, were introduced firstly in the
business and management field, hence their
classification is business oriented in nature.
Thomas R. Dye (Public Policy) states that the
general classification should be target and nontarget groups.
Target groups is that part of the population for
whom a program or policy is intended. Such as
policies to solve homelessness target the
homeless. Non-target groups are those who
receive impact of policy not directly intended at
them. For example, providing the homeless with
cheap but quality homes requires using

Categorizing Stakeholders
In this light, a “Stakeholder Analysis” is called for.
Campbell (2008) cites the the Mendelow
framework is often used to attempt to understand
the influence that each stakeholder has over an
organization's objectives and/or strategy.
The idea is to establish which stakeholders have the
most influence by estimating each stakeholder’s
individual power over – and interest in – the
organization's affairs. The stakeholders with the
highest combination of power and interest are likely
to be those with the most actual influence over
objectives.
Power is the stakeholder’s ability to influence
objectives (how much they can), while interest is
the stakeholder’s willingness (how much they care).
Influence = Power x Interest

The Pros and Cons of the
Framework
The framework is the most basic way of analyzing
stakeholders but it is in no way the most
accurate. It is hard to find ways of effectively
measuring each stakeholder’s power and
interest. The ‘map’ generated by the analysis of
power and interest (on which stakeholders are
plotted accordingly) is not static; changing
events can mean that stakeholders can move
around the map with consequent changes to the
list of the influential stakeholders in an
organization. Before using the framework a
“Problem tree” can help identify the

An example of A problem tree
Exploitation
Prostitution
Crime
Povert
y
Illiteracy
Unemployment
Lack of
opportunities

The Mendelow Framework: A brief
look
LOW
LOW
Minimal
effort
Keep
satisfied
HIGH
HIGH
Keep
informed
Key
players

Stakeholder “essentials”
Identify
Analyze
Engage
Manage

Need to know….
Who they are
What they think
What influence they have
How to engage them
How to inform
How to stay in touch
If things change

Stakeholder management
We manage stakeholders by:
identifying conflicts/potential conflicts, gaps,
contradictions or incompatibilities between
stakeholder requirements, so that a reconciliation
strategy can be planned.
ensuring ongoing communication, two-way
information access, monitor changes in
engagement, attitude and/or influence

Engagement

References:
• What to Do when Stakeholders Matter: Stakeholder
Identification and Analysis Techniques by John M. Bryson
Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs 245 Humphrey
Center University of Minnesota
• Brinkerhoff, D. and B. Crosby, “Managing Policy Reform:
Concepts and Tools for Decision-makers in Developing and
Transitioning Countries”, Kumarian Press, CT, 2002
• Freeman, R. E. (1984) StrateaicM anaaementA: StakeholdeAr
pproach, Boston, MA: Pinnan.
• Dye, Thomas R. Public Policy

Thank you !