Stakeholder engagement is a critical part of any complex project—whether you’re building infrastructure, launching a renewable energy site, or delivering community programs. But engaging with stakeholders effectively takes more than good intentions. It requires the right combination of tools to manage communication, collect input, maintain transparency, and deliver on commitments.
So which tool can be used to help with stakeholder engagement?
The answer depends on your goals, your team’s structure, and the complexity of your stakeholder landscape. From simple surveys to advanced software, there are a wide range of tools to support engagement at different stages.
Types of stakeholder engagement tools
Stakeholder engagement tools can be grouped into several categories—some strategic, others operational. Here are some of the most commonly used tools:
- Stakeholder mapping: Visualizing stakeholders by influence, interest, or impact helps prioritize engagement strategies.
- Stakeholder surveys: Useful for collecting feedback, gauging sentiment, or identifying emerging concerns at scale.
- Stakeholder registers: Repositories that store contact details, relationships, and communication preferences.
- RACI matrices: Clarify roles and responsibilities across stakeholders (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed).
- Stakeholder communication plans: Define how and when different stakeholder groups will be communicated with.
- Online communication platforms: Tools like Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or Slack facilitate real-time coordination and dialogue.
- Brainstorming techniques: Useful for identifying stakeholders early on or co-creating engagement strategies with diverse teams.
- Change management tools: Support stakeholder engagement during transitions or organizational shifts.
- Data analysis tools: Help identify trends in stakeholder feedback and engagement outcomes.
- Data visualization dashboards: Software like Power BI or Tableau can be used to communicate results or report on KPIs.
- Dedicated software solutions: Stakeholder relationship management platforms (SRM) also known as Stakeholder management software or stakeholder engagement tool, combine many of the above capabilities into a centralized, scalable system.
While all of these tools have their place, organizations with ongoing or high-stakes engagement needs often turn to SRM software to tie everything together.
What is stakeholder relationship management (SRM) software?
SRM software is a dedicated platform that centralizes stakeholder information, tracks engagement activities, manages tasks and commitments, and generates reports. It acts as a hub—connecting data from surveys, field visits, portals, and emails—and gives teams a shared view of stakeholder relationships.
Unlike spreadsheets or general CRMs, SRM tools are purpose-built for stakeholder work. They combine structured data capture (like registers and contact logs), with operational tools (like task management, mobile access, and reporting), and compliance safeguards (like audit trails and commitment tracking).
Used well, SRM software complements your existing toolkit. For example:
- Survey results can be imported and linked to specific stakeholders.
- Feedback forms can feed directly into the stakeholder record.
- Meeting notes can be logged in the same system where commitments and deadlines are tracked.
- Dashboards can summarize activities by region, stakeholder type, or issue area.
Features to look for in a stakeholder engagement platform
If you’re ready to invest in an SRM solution, here are five core features to prioritize—along with the benefits they bring to three key roles on your team:
- Elizabeth – The VP focused on strategy and oversight
- Diana – The CSR Manager working in the field
- Nicolas – The Data Manager ensuring accuracy and system efficiency
1. Communication tracking & history
A complete, searchable log of every stakeholder interaction—from emails and meetings to grievances and updates—provides visibility and continuity.
- Elizabeth: Gains insights from summary dashboards and can track engagement progress over time.
- Diana: Easily logs field activities, ensuring nothing is missed when following up with community members.
- Nicolas: Ensures consistency in how communications are recorded, supporting clean data and reliable reports.
2. Stakeholder-facing portals and forms
Allow stakeholders to submit feedback, requests, or complaints directly into the system using public forms or portals.
- Elizabeth: Meets transparency expectations and helps demonstrate responsiveness in ESG or regulatory reports.
- Diana: Saves time by eliminating manual data entry and allows her to respond more quickly to community concerns.
- Nicolas: Automates data intake, reduces inconsistencies, and sets up workflows to route submissions to the right teams.
3. Compliance management & ready-to-use reports
Built-in tracking and templates make it easier to meet internal reporting needs and external regulatory requirements.
- Elizabeth: Quickly generates high-level summaries for leadership, boards, or oversight bodies.
- Diana: Tracks commitments made in the field and creates reports for meetings or follow-ups.
- Nicolas: Sets up the underlying data model and ensures reporting accuracy through validation and audit logs.
4. Data integration & clean data management
An SRM should connect with tools you already use—email platforms, spreadsheets, and databases—and enforce consistency in your stakeholder records.
- Elizabeth: Feels confident that reports are drawing from a reliable source of truth.
- Diana: Benefits from automated syncing with Outlook or other tools, so engagement is recorded effortlessly.
- Nicolas: Handles bulk imports, deduplication, custom fields, and API connections to other systems.
5. Collaboration & task management
Managing stakeholders is a team effort. Your SRM should support shared dashboards, task assignments, notifications, and workflows.
- Elizabeth: Gains visibility into team performance and ensures accountability across departments.
- Diana: Tracks commitments or follow-up actions after community meetings and assigns them to the right people.
- Nicolas: Sets up automated workflows that reduce manual tracking and improve collaboration.
The takeaway
There’s no single answer to the question, “which tool can be used to help with stakeholder engagement?” Depending on your goals, you may need several—surveys to gather input, maps to visualize influence, communication plans to guide outreach, and dashboards to report results.
But when engagement is ongoing, high-risk, or cross-functional, robust and trustworthy stakeholder engagement software becomes the backbone of your approach.
It ties together communication logs, survey inputs, stakeholder feedback, team actions, and reporting—all in one secure and scalable system.
By selecting an SRM like Borealis, that aligns with the needs of your strategic leaders, field teams, and data managers, you’ll empower your organization to engage more effectively, meet regulatory expectations, and build long-term trust with your stakeholders.
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