Learn how to plan and run a stakeholder event that meets your objectives, engages your audience, and builds trust and rapport. Follow these tips to design and deliver an effective event.

It’s important to recognise that stakeholder event is as means and not an end by itself! Moreover, it’s just one step in the broader and deeper process of ‘stakeholder engagement’, a continuous process.

What's the best way to plan and run a stakeholder event?

Stakeholder events are a great way to communicate your vision, gather feedback, and build relationships with the people who matter most to your organization. But planning and running a successful stakeholder event requires careful preparation, execution, and follow-up. Here are some tips to help you make the most of your next stakeholder event.

1 Define your objectives

Before you start planning your stakeholder event, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and how you will measure it. Do you want to inform, consult, collaborate, or empower your stakeholders? What are the key messages, outcomes, and actions you want them to take away? How will you evaluate the impact and satisfaction of your event? Having SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) objectives will help you design and deliver a relevant and effective event.

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Deepak Maheshwari (दीपक माहेश्वरी)

Public Policy | Storyteller | Technology
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It’s important to recognise that stakeholder event is as means and not an end by itself! Moreover, it’s just one step in the broader and deeper process of ‘stakeholder engagement’, a continuous process.

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2 Identify and segment your stakeholders

Once you have your objectives, you need to identify who are your stakeholders and what are their interests, needs, and expectations. You can use a stakeholder analysis tool, such as a power-interest matrix, to map out your stakeholders and prioritize them according to their level of influence and interest in your project or initiative. Then, you can segment your stakeholders into different groups based on their characteristics, preferences, and goals. This will help you tailor your event content, format, and communication style to each group.

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Sandra Nichols, MA, CCMP™ Change Maker™
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In my experience, I found that my most successful events creatively leveraged the audience as part of the event. It ignites social influence. For example, elevating someone who has been successful in the desired action to share a story; using "reverse" Q&A with a few "plants" to help generate conversation. This often works well in the beginning to set goals or at the end to open dialogue and cover off on wrap-up actions. e.g, ... "How do you plan to implement the course in your programs?" The more you can bring the audience in the better.

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3 Choose the right format and platform

Depending on your objectives, stakeholder segments, and budget, you can choose from a variety of formats and platforms for your stakeholder event. For example, you can host a webinar, a workshop, a panel discussion, a roundtable, or a town hall meeting. You can also decide whether to hold your event online, offline, or in a hybrid mode. Each option has its pros and cons, so you need to weigh them carefully and consider factors such as accessibility, engagement, interaction, feedback, and cost.

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4 Plan the agenda and logistics

Once you have chosen your format and platform, you need to plan the agenda and logistics of your stakeholder event. You need to consider how long your event will last, how many sessions or speakers you will have, what topics or themes you will cover, and how you will structure the flow and transitions. You also need to plan the logistics, such as the venue, the equipment, the registration, the invitations, the catering, the security, and the contingency plans. You need to assign roles and responsibilities to your team members and coordinate with your partners and vendors.

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5 Engage and communicate with your stakeholders

A stakeholder event is not a one-off activity, but a part of a continuous engagement and communication process. You need to communicate with your stakeholders before, during, and after your event to build trust, rapport, and feedback loops. Before your event, you need to inform your stakeholders about the purpose, agenda, and expectations of your event and invite them to register and participate. During your event, you need to welcome, acknowledge, and interact with your stakeholders and facilitate their questions, comments, and input. After your event, you need to thank, follow up, and share the outcomes and actions with your stakeholders and solicit their feedback and suggestions.

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6 Evaluate and improve your event

The last step of planning and running a stakeholder event is to evaluate and improve your event. You need to collect and analyze data and feedback from your stakeholders, your team, and your partners to assess the effectiveness and impact of your event. You need to measure how well you met your objectives, how satisfied and engaged your stakeholders were, and what were the key learnings and insights from your event. You also need to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your event and the areas for improvement and innovation. You need to document and report your findings and recommendations and implement them in your future events.

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Divya-Kala Bhavani

PR, Comms & Marketing Director at Dhruva Space | SSPI-WISE Co-Chair
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Make sure it is aligned with your company’s business model! If your company has a product or customer development model, that will inform a lot about the tone, structure, and flow of the event itself - and, of course, the kind of impact the event will have on everyone attending.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Deepak Maheshwari (दीपक माहेश्वरी)

Public Policy | Storyteller | Technology
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Four specific points: 1) Stakeholder engagement is not just about interactions between the organiser of the host and the invitees but also amongst invitees. Hence, it’s a good idea to proactively create opportunities for such interactions with a diverse set. One way could be to rotate the mix of people at different tables after every break. 2) Prepare brief summary and share with the invitees. 3) Use of sketch notes / visual notes aids in better memorisation and comprehension. 4) Convey in advance whether the meeting is being recorded and if so, why. In closed door settings, some people may be more candid if they know that it’s being held under the ‘Chatham House’ rules. In some cases, explicit consent is sought in advance.

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Gladstone Samuel

Qualified Independent Director | ESG Practitioner | PMP®
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A hard lesson that we learnt while conducting a stakeholder event is about possible accidents and injuries to the guests and the supporting staff . It will be effective approach to have a doctor along with the first aid kits in place. Another dimension is about informing the participants about personal safety in the invitation. It will go a long way in conducting a safe event.

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What's the best way to plan and run a stakeholder event?

1

2

3

4

5

6

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1 Define your objectives

2 Identify and segment your stakeholders

3 Choose the right format and platform

4 Plan the agenda and logistics

5 Engage and communicate with your stakeholders

6 Evaluate and improve your event

7 Here’s what else to consider

Corporate Communications

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What's the best way to plan and run a stakeholder event?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1 Define your objectives

2 Identify and segment your stakeholders

3 Choose the right format and platform

4 Plan the agenda and logistics

5 Engage and communicate with your stakeholders

6 Evaluate and improve your event

7 Here’s what else to consider

Corporate Communications

Rate this article

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