Course - Value and stakeholders in projects - IØ6208
Value and stakeholders in projects
New from the academic year 2026/2027
Assessments and mandatory activities may be changed until September 20th.
About
About the course
Course content
Projects are increasingly used to create value within organisations and across society. At the same time, the goals, direction, and outcomes of projects are shaped by a wide variety of stakeholders with different interests, expectations, priorities, and sources of influence. Project success, therefore, depends not only on technical execution but also on the ability to realise value and manage stakeholders strategically, transparently, and responsibly. This course provides a research-informed and practice-oriented introduction to how projects create, negotiate, and realise value, and to how stakeholders influence and are influenced by projects. It integrates theoretical perspectives with practical tools for value creation, benefits realisation, decision-making, stakeholder identification, stakeholder analysis, and engagement strategies. The aim is to give participants a comprehensive framework for understanding and managing value dimensions and stakeholder landscapes in complex projects.
The course is organised around two core components:
- Project Value - value concepts, strategic alignment, benefits realisation, uncertainty and decision-making
- Project Stakeholders - stakeholder theories, influence and legitimacy, communication, engagement, conflict management, and collaboration in interdisciplinary settings
The course uses cases from sectors such as infrastructure, technology development, public-sector innovation, sustainability transitions, and organisational change. Emphasis is placed on active participation and experience sharing among participants.
Learning outcome
Knowledge
After completing the course, participants will be able to:
- Demonstrate advanced understanding of how projects create and realise value, and the different types of value (economic, strategic, societal, environmental) relevant in various contexts.
- Explain key models for benefits management, value realisation, and decision-making.
- Understand major theories related to project stakeholders, including power, legitimacy, roles, and stakeholder dynamics across the project life cycle.
- Recognise how project value and stakeholder landscapes are shaped by organisational, societal, and political contexts.
Skills
Participants will be able to:
- Analyse and evaluate project value using models for alternative assessment, cost-benefit thinking, and uncertainty.
- Identify and analyse stakeholders using established theoretical frameworks and analytical tools.
- Develop and justify stakeholder engagement and communication strategies that support value realisation.
- Apply theories and tools to their own professional context to assess value potential, risks, and priorities.
General Competence
Participants will be able to:
- Reflect critically on the relationship between value, governance, legitimacy, and stakeholder management in projects.
- Communicate complex assessments related to value and stakeholder strategies to both professional peers and decision-makers.
- Operate effectively in interdisciplinary and international project environments with awareness of ethics, communication, and responsibility.
Learning methods and activities
The course will be carried out in four full-day sessions, with individual and group work taking place concurrently. The dates of the sessions are outlined in the course timetable and are expected to take place at NTNU facilities in Oslo and Trondheim. The learning material will comprise a selection of teaching cases and literature that students will be asked to engage with before the sessions. Classroom sessions will include case-based work, group work with discussions of examples as well as a comprehensive simulation to maximise the learning experience of the group. Between the two full-day session blocks, students will engage with the material through self-study and develop their assignments. Teaching cases and class discussions will have an international scope, and the primary working language of the course will be English. However, some sessions, small-group work discussions, and student assignments will be in Norwegian.
Teaching plan: Engagement with allocated pre-reading, Class attendance and participation, Self-study and development of individual assignments.
Further on evaluation
Further on evaluation
The assessment will be based on the brief to develop an approach to value and stakeholder management in an organisation. To maximise the learning value of the course for students, the final paper will involve students choosing the organisational setting that they will address in their report (in the initial submission) and then applying insights, concepts and ideas from the course on the challenges identified in their organisational (or project) setting in the final submission.
Two assignments prepared in advance of the submission deadlines consist of:
- Initial submission that defines the brief that the student will address later in the course final assignment. This will be a description of the setting (organisation or project) and the issues that will be the focus of the final course report. The initial submission is 500-600 words not including figures, tables and references and represents 10% of the final mark.
- Final report, which is based on the initial submission brief. The final report should demonstrate understanding of the concepts and examples discussed in class, applied to the chosen setting (as defined in the initial submission). The final submission should be 1800-2000 words, excluding figures, tables, and references. The final report comprises 90% of the final mark.
Information about submission deadlines will be announced at the start of the course.
All parts must be retaken if the student wishes to improve the grade in the subject.
Recommended previous knowledge
IØ6207 - Prosjektorganisasjoner
Required previous knowledge
Admission to a programme of study is required:
Organisasjon og ledelse (MORG)
Continuing courses in Management (MORGEMNER)
Course materials
Will be stated at the start of the course.
Subject areas
- Organization and Leadership
- Project Quality Management
- Industrial Economics and Technology Management
- Technological subjects
Contact information
Course coordinator
Lecturers
Department with academic responsibility
Department of Industrial Economics and Technology Management