Implementing Cultural Participatory Business Models: The Living Labs Approach

Stakeholder mapping

After filling out your initial CPBM Canvas, you can get started with stakeholder mapping - an exercise to identify all actors who have a stake in the questions raised by your Living Lab. This will help to ensure that the process is truly participatory and that the right stakeholders are involved at the proper stages to design and execute a successful participatory business model.

Not sure where to start? Use one of the already existing stakeholder mapping tools to visualise your stakeholders and their needs (check out the Living Labs Sample Toolbox chapter for examples). Do not be afraid to adjust or combine the tools to suit your needs. Start by identifying stakeholder group types (for instance, corporate organisations, local communities or creatives) and then match them with specific names of organisations or persons you would like to engage.

Stakeholder mapping is an iterative exercise - you will have to come back to it and update it as your Living Lab process takes shape. For instance, during initial engagement with the Living Lab participants, you might identify a new stakeholder group that needs to be involved. Come back to your stakeholder mapping visualisation at regular intervals to check that all relevant stakeholders are engaged. "An important note is to be conscientious and considerate of developing stakeholder engagement practices that support more diverse participants with equitable and inclusive spaces and conditions for work and collaboration. Supporting more diverse stakeholder engagement might mean creating space for participation for historically underrepresented groups, which in mapping could translate to identifying issues and interests of different communities, finding common ground, and tailoring an engagement and communication strategy in your outreach.

In the mapping of external stakeholders, consider actors who are integral to the execution of the Living Lab and need to take part in the participatory decision‐making process. Your selected CPBM and the specific project idea determine who belongs to this group. This might range from other heritage organisations and commercial entities to local community organisations and individual citizens. Depending on the motivations and expertise each stakeholder brings, the Living Lab can determine the specific decisions and stages of the process that they should be involved in.

Stakeholder management

Once you have an initial version of your stakeholder mapping done, translate it into a stakeholder management document. Here, you can define more specific approaches for the engagement of each individual stakeholder. We suggest including the following:

• Stakeholder contact person - make sure to identify a specific person within the stakeholder organisation who will be your contact;
• Motivation - what drives their engagement in the Living Lab;
• Roles - what they contribute and what roles they can take on in the Living Lab;
• Who is responsible for communicating with them - in most cases, this will be the Community Manager;
• Participatory approaches - activities that they will be part of in the Living Lab process;
• Communication tracker - keeping a track record of communication with this stakeholder and activities they took part in.

Stakeholders in your organisations

• Marketing & communication - a person who oversees the marketing and communication strategy, including producing communication materials tailored for different stakeholder groups.

You will also need to add roles specific to your Living Lab activities - this will depend on your Living Lab project and the chosen CPMB.

Consider also how you will engage your organisation’s management team - you might need to consult and get their approval at different stages of implementing the Living Lab. While they might not be actively engaged in the Living Lab process, you will need to communicate with them proactively to ensure that the CPMB is positioned within the organisation’s strategy.

If you find that your organisation lacks the right expertise and skills to lead the living labs process, consider working with an outside expert - for instance, you might want to hire an external consultant or facilitator. Use this playbook to scope their assignment.