Identifying Core Community Needs and Stakeholders

Last updated on 2025-04-25 | Edit this page

Estimated time: 35 minutes

Overview

Questions

  • Why is it important to define the community your project serves?
  • How can identifying stakeholders support project sustainability?
  • What methods can help surface diverse community needs?

Objectives

  • Define who the core community and stakeholders are for your project.
  • Describe methods for understanding user and contributor needs.
  • Use a stakeholder mapping activity to reflect on your project’s inclusivity and reach.

Who is Your Community?

Open projects often have multiple communities: - End users of your tools or outputs - Contributors who build or document the project - Institutional partners offering resources or credibility

Identifying these groups early supports targeted outreach, governance, and technical design.

Stakeholder Types

Stakeholders may include: - Academic institutions - Funders - Developers and maintainers - Advocacy groups - Underrepresented or marginalized users

Methods to Understand Needs

  • Community surveys
  • User interviews
  • Feedback channels (GitHub issues, mailing lists)
  • Co-design or participatory design workshops

Exercise: Stakeholder Mapping

Challenge

Time: 15 minutes

Draw a stakeholder map for your project: - Place your project in the center. - Add surrounding stakeholder groups, noting their role or interest. - Use arrows or color to indicate influence, alignment, or gaps.

Reflect in small groups: - Are any key perspectives missing? - Where do you need deeper engagement?

Discussion Prompt

Discussion

Who are the most influential or underrepresented stakeholders in your project or field? What steps could you take to better include them?

Next Steps

In the next episode, we’ll look at selecting tools and infrastructure that serve both your community and sustainability goals.

Key Points

  • A sustainable project starts with a clear understanding of who it serves.
  • Stakeholders include both internal and external contributors, users, and institutional supporters.
  • Effective stakeholder mapping can reveal gaps in engagement or representation.