Stakeholders are vital to change implementation. They are the people of an organization that “have something to either gain or lose as a result of the project” (Watt, 2014, p. 38). Therefore, it is important to identify the key stakeholders to support the initiative. Encouraging stakeholder participation, allows ownership in the process, and “ the more [they] value the change, the more they will want to implement the change” (Weiner, 2009, p. 3).
Understanding the role of the stakeholder in the change process is an important component for success. Thus, identifying the levels of interest, influence and involvement the stakeholders have will be vital when managing the relationships and communication with those involved as you move forward (Watt, 2014, p. 26).