Developing a communications strategy should focus on the entire time line for a project and also the complete impact on the entire stakeholder community.  The purpose should be to ensure stakeholders are prepared, aligned, and equipped for the project changes.  The strategy should be developed after the project goals and desired outcomes have been identified and the technical and/or procedural solutions have been finalized.  The broader categories for understanding stakeholders are the 1) human and social systems, 2) organizational structure and relationships, and 3) the systems, process and ownership.

Human Behavior
Understanding stakeholder behavior
Create a Cultural Change plan
Behavior Modification
Changing stakeholder values and benefits
Build new working relationships
Cultivate a commitment to success


Structure and Relationships
Manage New Relationships
Validate new Workforce Rules
Ensure Knowledge Transfer
Manage Organizational Structure Changes
Manage fear and resistance to change
Communicate performance expectations
Plan for perception of threat to power and territory

Systems, Processes and Ownership
Process Management
New processes, policies and procedures
Transition business process redesign
Validate Organizational ownership
Foster pride in organizations performance

Some projects which impact business process change will need to have an added focus on all three of these.  Smaller projects which just a small change of functionality in an existing enterprise software package will not impact behavior or structure but would change the procedures for the impacted process.