ABSTRACT
This chapter offers a guide to a novel stakeholder mapping and analysis protocol–a synthesis of a number of existing tools that can help managers understand the sorts of factions and forces that buffeted American Energy Services (AES) so badly in Georgia. Some scholars and practitioners speak of the extent to which a firm, investor or policy-maker receives a social license from stakeholders. Due diligence, or the lack of it, doomed AES in Georgia. Due Diligence is essential, but it is just one element of an integrated approach to corporate diplomacy. The company's mergers and acquisition staffers and its investment bankers undoubtedly vetted Telasi—they surely understood its low collection rate, its antiquated accounting systems and its rickety distribution network. A common next step is a stakeholder survey conducted by employees or, preferably, external consultants. Stakeholders with many relationships, particularly if those relationships are with peers with many relationships, are good diffusers of information.
