How do you identify key stakeholders for LCA?

1 Define your LCA goal

The first step is to define your LCA goal and scope, which will determine the type and level of stakeholder engagement you need. For example, if your LCA goal is to compare different design alternatives for a product, you may need to engage with internal stakeholders such as engineers, marketers, and managers. If your LCA goal is to communicate the environmental benefits of your product to customers, you may need to engage with external stakeholders such as certification bodies, retailers, and consumers.

2 Map your stakeholder groups

The next step is to map your stakeholder groups based on their interest and influence on your LCA project. Interest refers to how much a stakeholder cares about the LCA results and how they can affect their decisions and actions. Influence refers to how much a stakeholder can affect the LCA process and outcome. You can use a matrix or a diagram to categorize your stakeholders into four groups: high interest and high influence, high interest and low influence, low interest and high influence, and low interest and low influence.

3 Prioritize your stakeholder groups

The third step is to prioritize your stakeholder groups based on their importance and urgency for your LCA project. Importance refers to how much a stakeholder can contribute to the quality and credibility of your LCA results. Urgency refers to how much a stakeholder can affect the timeline and feasibility of your LCA project. You can use a matrix or a diagram to rank your stakeholders into four groups: high importance and high urgency, high importance and low urgency, low importance and high urgency, and low importance and low urgency.

4 Plan your stakeholder engagement

The final step is to plan your stakeholder engagement based on their interest, influence, importance, and urgency. You can use different methods and tools to engage your stakeholders, such as surveys, interviews, workshops, focus groups, webinars, reports, newsletters, or social media. You should also consider the objectives, expectations, and challenges of each stakeholder group and tailor your engagement accordingly. For example, you may need to educate some stakeholders about the LCA concept and methodology, while you may need to persuade some stakeholders about the LCA benefits and recommendations.

By following these steps, you can identify key stakeholders for LCA and ensure that your project is relevant, credible, and impactful. Stakeholder engagement is not a one-time activity, but a continuous process that requires communication, collaboration, and feedback throughout the LCA project.

5 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?