Before a project moves into execution, an engineering manager needs to know who has an interest in its outcome. These people or groups are stakeholders. They may need to help shape decisions, coordinate work, or understand how progress and changes affect them. Identify key stakeholders during preplanning rather than waiting for a problem to bring them into the conversation. section 10.3
Keep stakeholder relationships useful throughout the project:
- Align nontechnical partners and stakeholders with project goals. Explain why work such as addressing technical debt matters to longer-term results. section 9.5
- Check in during execution while the team implements, tests, and resolves defects. Use those conversations to surface coordination problems and risks. section 10.1.4
- Share progress regularly and flag work that is trending off track early. Clear expectations make later conversations about scope, time, and resources easier. section 11.4.3
Make progress visible before an escalation
A weekly engineering email and frequent Slack messages can show stakeholders what has been delivered. If a smaller set of items later slips or grows in scope, that ongoing visibility gives everyone a better starting point for discussing trade-offs. Do not wait until a deadline has been missed to raise a risk. section 11.4.3
As you plan a project, ask: Who needs to be involved in decisions, who needs progress updates, and who should hear promptly if the plan changes? section 10.3 section 11.4.3
