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Does it best
With around 44,000 service stations and 10 million customers to satisfy every day, balancing
stakeholders is a tall order for Shell’s leaders. They recognize five areas of stakeholder responsibility:
shareholders, customers, employees, suppliers, and society. All have different priorities and all are
essential to Shell’s success. Shareholders want their investment protected. Employees need to be safe,
healthy, and motivated. Suppliers need good business relationships with Shell. Customers want value for
their money as well as cleaner, more efficient fuels. Communities need to be reassured of a safe
environment. To ensure the needs of all its stakeholder groups are met, Shell applies three criteria in its
decision making: the economic impact, the social impact, and the long-term effect. Shell leaders make it
their business to understand what’s important to people and go the extra mile to act upon it. For example,
Shell LiveWire is an online community for young entrepreneurs. Shell provides resources and information
to help them turn their ideas into reality. With annual revenue in excess of US$480 billion, Shell was
number one in Fortune’s Global 500 in 2013. Shell’s efforts to balance stakeholder relationships have led
to significant competitive advantage. 49, 50

Tips to develop Balances stakeholders
1. Don’t know where to start? Identify your stakeholders. Balancing stakeholders effectively starts
with knowing who they are. And often your stakeholder group will extend further than you think. Start
by considering everyone who could be impacted by what you’re working on. Better to start big and
narrow it down than overlook people. Who is impacted by the change your strategy or project will
bring? Who will support it? Who will fight it? Who has influence and power over what you’re doing?
Who has an interest in whether the project succeeds or fails? Who has something to contribute—
information, time, resources? Get others to help you identify stakeholders. Involve your sponsor, a
trusted advisor, or someone in the know. Who do they see as your stakeholders? Scan internally and
consider the less obvious functions. Look outside the organization to groups who may also have a
stake. Customers. Suppliers. Community groups. Governmental agencies. Analysts. Make your list,
then critique it. Who have you missed? Who’s on it that shouldn’t be? Leave it. Go back to it. Update
it. Keep at it until you’re satisfied.

2. Not sure who you’re dealing with? Get to know your stakeholders. It’s one thing to determine
who your stakeholders are, but how much do you actually know about them? To manage them and
balance their needs, you have to know what makes them tick. Analyze your stakeholder group. Get to
know them. Understand them. Complete a stakeholder analysis to structure your thinking and ensure
you cover everything. Here’s a start:

• What’s their connection to the project?
• What financial interests do they have?
• What motivates them?

• What’s their current view of the situation?
• How are they likely to feel about the intended outcome of what you’re working on?
• Who else might influence their opinions?
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