Glossary Stakeholder
Stakeholder
LeadershipProject Management
Definition
Anyone with a stake in a piece of work's outcome — who can be affected by it, block it, or be asked about it — whether or not they are doing it
The RACI matrix is a way of sorting stakeholders: which ones are Responsible, which one is Accountable, which are Consulted, which are only Informed. The mistake is treating the last two the same, or discovering a stakeholder after the decision.
The people a decision has to survive. Naming them before the work is what a kickoff is for; naming them afterward is what a post-mortem is for.