A very general definition of a stakeholder is someone who has an interest in a company for some reason. The most common stakeholders in a company are the employees, the customers and the shareholders. In large companies the government can sometimes be a stakeholder. Companies in small, rural areas often also have the community around them as stakeholders. All stakeholders have power over a company's decisions, however, the level of power a stakeholder has varies hugely, depending on why someone is a stakeholder in the first place. In general a major shareholder has far more power over a company than one of the lowest level employees, but they are still both stakeholders in the company by definition.
             Mainly people are stakeholders in a company for financial reasons, customers do not want to have to spend an excessive amount of money to purchase the product, employees wish to be paid, shareholder's want to receive dividends. The reasons for a stakeholder's interest in a company are not always simple. For instance the government showed an interest in the well being of Air New Zealand well before they had a financial interest in the company, therefore they were a stakeholder. The governments interest was due to the financial impact losing New Zealand's national carrier would have on the country, rather than actually for the good of the company itself. It was this interest that made them decide to invest in Air New Zealand, making them shareholders and giving them far more influence over the company.
             Stakeholders in a company can cause problems for a company because they often have very conflicting views. What satisfies one set of stakeholders may make another set of stakeholders angry and upset with the company. Because of this, managers of a company must think about the desires of all stakeholders and tailor their decisions to suit as many stakeholders as possible, as often as possible. It is also impo...