The Stakeholder Role Stakeholders are individuals, associations, or organizations with an interest in a particular issue. Because of their varied backgrounds, affiliations, and interests, they often hold different, and even divergent, perspectives on how to best manage the issue and even what the final objectives should be. However, despite dissimilar value systems and the potential for conflict, stakeholders can develop innovative, creative, and positive strategic alliances that often result in formal partnerships. Positive, mutually beneficial alliances and partnerships are only possible when stakeholders commit to flexibility, negotiation, and compromise. To accomplish this, however, stakeholders must first agree on the desired outcomes and means to achieve them.
Collaboration requires open and frequent communications.
Meetings should include policymaking and technical representatives who have decisionmaking authority. Partnerships can increase awareness on the range and depth of locally available expertise. Librarians and other cultural heritage professionals. Employees of libraries, museums, archives, historical societies, and the like. In collaboration with educators and with their own children.