To communicate effectively when addressing groups, you want to first identify and classify those groups into meaningful categories. In the communication discipline, this process is referred to as stakeholder analysis. A stakeholder is any individual or group that has an interest in the organisation, that the organisation has an interest in, or whose life or work is affected by the organisation’s activities.
What is Power-Interest Matrix
The power–interest matrix is an approach that categorises stakeholders into four engagement strategies:
- Minimal Effort
These stakeholders require minimal effort because they have low power and low interest in the organisation. For example, distant relatives or one-time church visitors or peripheral audiences such as casual website visitors or inactive customers.
- Keep informed
These kinds of stakeholders should be kept informed because they have low power but highly interested in the organisation, or the organisation is highly interested in them. Examples are older children in a family, active church volunteers or loyal customers.
- Keep Satisfied
This category must be kept satisfied by all means because they have power but not quite interested in the organisation. Financial sponsors or senior family elders not involved daily or regulators and large investors who require compliance but limited engagement.
- Key Players
These are the key players in the organisation because they possess both power and are highly interested in the organisation. They should be well engaged at all times with the right activities, information and resources. Examples are employees, Parents in a family or pastors and elders in a church, or senior executives, boards, and strategic partners in an organisation.
From Mapping to Meaningful Engagement
Regardless of the model used, organisations must assign priority levels and design tailored communication strategies for each stakeholder group. Cornelissen (2014) refers to stakeholders with both high power and high interest as key players, recommending constant and proactive communication.
In a family, this may involve consistent communication between parents. In a church, it means regular engagement between pastoral leadership and governance structures. In an organisation, this involves continuous engagement between executive leadership, boards, and strategic stakeholders.
Luoma-aho’s (2015) concept of faith-holders further underscores this point. Faith-holders wield high power because they influence other stakeholders. In practice, prioritising such stakeholders may require redirecting organisational resources away from reactive crisis management toward sustained support and service that strengthens trust and credibility.
In families, respected elders often play this role. In churches, trusted long-serving members or ministry leaders. In organisations, long-term partners, respected employees, or trusted customers who influence wider perceptions.
Stakeholders with high interest but low power should be kept informed. While they may lack influence individually, they are critical for sustained commitment and positive advocacy.
Word-of-mouth, for instance, remains a powerful strategic tool: satisfied stakeholders are likely to share their experience with three to five others, while dissatisfied stakeholders may share negative experiences with ten to eleven people (You & Hon, 2021).
References
Cornelissen, J. (2014). Corporate communication: A guide to theory and practice (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Luoma-aho, V. (2015). Faith-holders as social capital of firms: A stakeholder approach. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 20(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCIJ-01-2014-0004
You, Y., & Hon, L. C. (2021). How social media builds dialogic relationships: Examining the antecedents and outcomes of organization–public interactions. Public Relations Review, 47(2), 102004. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2021.102004