Stakeholders are individuals, groups, or organizations that have an interest in a company or project and can either affect or be affected by its operations and performance. They can be internal or external to the organization, and they have different interests and needs. Some examples of stakeholders include:

• Primary stakeholders: These are usually internal stakeholders who engage in economic transactions with the business, such as stockholders, customers, suppliers, creditors, and employees).

• Secondary stakeholders: These are usually external stakeholders who are affected by or can affect the actions of the business, such as the general public, communities, activist groups, business support groups, and the media).

• Critical or key stakeholders: These are stakeholders whose support is needed for the project or business to exist.

Stakeholders can be anyone with influence or anyone who can be influenced by the project or business. They can come from a variety of connections to the organization or project, such as customers, employees, investors, suppliers, boards of directors, community members and organizations, and government entities. Identifying stakeholders and analyzing their needs and interests is an important part of stakeholder management. Companies often face trade-offs in trying to please all stakeholders, and they may need to prioritize stakeholders based on their interests and needs.