A common frustration I see from folks pivoting out of higher ed (or non-profit generally) is a resistance to using "corporate" language - and the more buzzword-y, the stronger the resistance. "Stakeholders" in particular seems to get a bad rap - but I am here to tell you that, at least as a project manager, stakeholders are so much more than just buzzwords. And remember, if your frustration centers around being generic, that another word for "generic" is "all-encompassing", and as a pivoter it definitely benefits you to have an encompassing name for any concept that closely mirrors your skills.

First, a quick refresher around vocab.

Project Management 101

Recall that a project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result. A stakeholder is anyone with an interest in that product, service, or result. Stakeholders can be individuals, groups, or organizations. They can be internal to your group, or they can be completely unrelated to your organization but might be impacted by the results. (For example, if you're building a parking garage adjacent to a neighborhood, the residents of that neighborhood are stakeholders, because they have an interest in your result. Will the garage bring more traffic into their neighborhood? Will it affect parking prices nearby? Etc.) Basically, if they're related to or interested in your project at all, they're a stakeholder.

We do need a broad word for this group because as a project manager, maintaining positive relationships with every stakeholder is a core part of success. (AKA, it's gonna come up in the interview.) Great project managers work well with the folks on their team and achieve efficiency in their project targets, but they also keep other stakeholders in mind. This could look like:

• Managing up to keep your project sponsor (who might or might not be your boss) happy. For example, you might tailor reports depending on who's receiving them and how you know they prefer to receive information.
• Staying close to external stakeholders; even groups you work with often might have very different opinions from one project to the next. You might commission surveys to understand this flux.
• Communicating with project funders - many of whom will want to define the basis for communicating. How often do they want to receive information? What information matters to them? Similar to the above, this can change from funder to funder, or can change across projects for the same funder.

What this means for you

Many of you are coming here with a long history of committee work. (Committees in general are a great place to start a list of transferrable PM skills.) If you're reading the above list and thinking: I would take care of all of that by hosting a kick-off meeting.. that's the future PM in you talking. :)

So, I'd encourage you to reframe any resistance around jargon into an opportunity. If you're reading a job description that refers constantly to stakeholders, that's a signal to reach back and list times you've:

• Led committees - especially with peers or folks senior to you.
• Led any climate, wellness, or other survey work. Bonus points for anything campus-wide.
• Fixed or maintained relationships with anyone known to be "difficult". Are you the harmonizer on your team? If so, the word "stakeholder" is a gold mine for you!
• Brought a group of people together with conflicting objectives and organized a common foundation.
• Shared "bad" news with someone who didn't want to hear it and preserved the relationship anyway.
• Made (approved) changes to a reporting process based on a VIP's preferences.
• Provided customer service, especially if the "customers" are a varied group.

There are many more examples (though I hope this list got you thinking). The upshot of this post is really that I can't think of a job in higher ed that doesn't focus heavily on stakeholder work. It's not just customer/client work!