stakeholder-mapping

Stakeholder Mapping

Purpose

Turn a deal's contact list into a power map: who matters, how much influence each person carries, whether they're for you or against you, and — most importantly — which decision-making roles you have not yet reached. Output a coverage gap list and a concrete plan to access the missing players before they sink the deal.

Inputs

• The list of people you've engaged on the deal (names + titles)
• What each person has said or done (transcripts, emails, your recollection)
• The deal's stage, size, and what you're trying to advance
• Your read on the org chart (reporting lines, who answers to whom)

Method

1. List every known contact with title and the last time you interacted.
2. Score each person on three axes and place them in the grid below.
3. Classify each as champion / blocker / neutral / coach using the rules.
4. Run the coverage check: mark which buying roles are filled vs. empty.
5. Build the access plan to reach the empty roles.
6. Emit the power map in the output format.

Three axes (score each person 1–5):

• Role power — formal authority over the decision and budget.
• Influence — informal sway over the outcome, regardless of title.
• Sentiment — how they feel about you/your solution: −2 (against) to +2 (for).

Power-map grid (role power × influence):

                 HIGH INFLUENCE          LOW INFLUENCE
              +----------------------+----------------------+
  HIGH POWER  | KEY PLAYERS          | DORMANT AUTHORITY    |
              | (must win — econ     | (has the title, not  |
              |  buyer, exec sponsor)| engaged — wake them)  |
              +----------------------+----------------------+
  LOW  POWER  | HIDDEN INFLUENCERS   | LOW PRIORITY         |
              | (no title, big sway —| (keep warm, don't    |
              |  coach, gatekeeper)  |  over-invest)        |
              +----------------------+----------------------+

Plot each contact into one quadrant. Annotate each name with sentiment (+2 … −2). The top-left quadrant is where deals are won or lost.