Weaving Stakeholder Needs for Systems Design

Sara Barrett

Stakeholder engagement is an integral part of building system designs. Even more imperative is to use transparency to inform the stakeholder of the participation level and to validate that their needs are being met by the system design. Thankfully, many tools exist today to help collect, define, trace, and prioritize stakeholder voices. However, the tools are vast and are located within various systems design professional knowledge bases.

This presentation strives to collect key stakeholder frameworks and use the benefits of these frameworks to build a comprehensive process for system designers. The proposed process begins using an iceberg diagram to develop the needs of the stakeholders within the visible and invisible layers. Next, using the stakeholders developed, the design team uses a bullseye diagram to map the stakeholder relationship to the problem. In co-design, those directly impacted by the system must be included in the stakeholder development process. Next, the design team engages a journey map to collect and organize stakeholder needs throughout a time measurement, acknowledging needs change over time. Finally, the design of the system and the needs journey map are presented to the stakeholders at key points in the project, ensuring the needs of the stakeholders are met and building a strong connection for future engagement opportunities.