From our point of view one of the most important person is the "project manager". His responsibility is very extensive: he decides about every aspect in the all project's life cycle from the beginning to its end. Success or failure of the final results depend on the manager so this person has a big impact on the all enterprise.
The second equally significant person or a group in every project is a "sponsor". The sponsor is not directly involved during project implementation however its role is important as he provides financial resources for the project. We have seen lots of innovative and promising projects but without financial aid they could not begin and be put into effect that is why good and stable sponsor is crucial in the project.
Other group that you may find in the project are customers who will buy or use the final product or service. They could be institutions, organisations or just simply people. We can also distinguish team members of the project who are directly engaged in all activities.
We should not also forget about "influencers" who have a strong position in the company or any organization and can influence on the project in a positive or negative way. Sometimes we can also find a "PMO" (for example a stakeholder) that could have an impact of the project's results.
Besides we can distuinguish other group of people or types of project partners and stakeholders who guarentee prosperity for the enterprise like: buyers and sellers, suppliers, co-workers, agencies, lobby groups, political environment, home and foreign market etc. We need to remember that the key stakeholders are very important in every project and good relationships and cooperation between them and the rest management team must be kept to ensure success for the project.
source: PMP® Resources
published: 2009-09-29 01:34:29