What is a stakeholder? How do you manage stakeholder expectations? - Google Project Mgmt
Google Project Management Interview Question and Answers - What is a stakeholder? How do you manage stakeholder expectations?
A stakeholder is any individual, group, or organization that can affect, be affected by, or perceives itself to be affected by the project’s outcome. That includes obvious players like the sponsor and end users, but also less obvious ones, operations, compliance, vendors, external regulators, and even downstream partners.
Types of Stakeholders
Executive / Sponsor — provides funding, strategic priority, decision authority.
Business Owners / Product Owners — define requirements, accept deliverables.
Project Team — delivery leads, SMEs, technical and QA staff.
Operations / Support — will run the solution post-delivery.
Customers / End Users — adoption and usage determine benefits realization.
Vendors / Third Parties — deliver contracted scope or components.
Compliance / Legal / Security — non-negotiable constraints.
Steering Committee / Governance — provides oversight and trade-off decisions.
External: regulators, auditors, partners, or major customers.
Why Stakeholder Management matters?
Aligns expectations and reduces rework.
Speeds decision-making (when roles & escalation are clear).
Protects project value by ensuring adoption and operational readiness.
Prevents scope creep and political surprises.
