The Wall
April 22, 2025
The Organizational Stakeholder Stack: Building a Wall of Strength, Layer by Layer
In business, as in architecture, enduring strength isn’t just about what you build—it’s about how you build it. Imagine your organization as a wall. Each level of this wall represents a vital layer of your stakeholder community. Together, these layers form what I call the Stakeholder Stack—a structured, interconnected foundation of your company’s success.
But it’s not just the bricks that matter. It’s the mortar—the trust, values, and shared commitments—that binds the layers together and gives the wall impermeable strength; yet, if the mortar is missing in one or more layers, the wall will fail, and fall over.
The Foundation: Organizational Values
Every strong wall begins with a solid foundation. In business, that foundation is the values system upon which your organization is built. Values are not slogans—they are lived, breathed, and demonstrated in the way decisions are made, people are treated, and partnerships are honored. Integrity, transparency, respect, and accountability form the bedrock that allows the stakeholder stack to rise.
Without values, the wall crumbles before it even has a chance to stand tall.
The Stakeholder Layers: The Bricks of the Wall
As we build upward from the foundation, each layer of the wall is made up of a critical stakeholder group. These layers include:
- Customers – the reason we exist. They provide the revenue and feedback that fuels growth.
- Employees – the hands, hearts, and minds that carry the mission forward every day.
- Vendors and Trade Partners – the allies who enable delivery and innovation through goods, services, and shared goals.
- Distributors and Resellers – the amplifiers who extend your market reach and voice.
- Professional Resources – attorneys, consultants, subject matter experts—who provide perspective, foresight, and compliance strength.
- Regulators – those who ensure adherence to rules that protect markets and society.
Each of these stakeholders is a “brick” or “block” in the wall. Alone, they are strong. But together, if mortared properly with trust, mutual respect, and communication, they become solid.
The Mortar: Trust
Even the strongest bricks are useless without mortar. In this analogy, trust is what binds every layer of the wall. Trust between employees and leadership. Trust between companies and customers. Trust that vendors will deliver and that partners will collaborate with integrity.
If even one layer of the Stakeholder Stack lacks trust—if communication fails, promises are broken, or values are violated—the integrity of the entire structure is at risk. Gaps emerge. Cracks spread. Eventually, the wall falls.
But when trust is present and actively maintained, the wall stands strong—weathering market shifts, competitive pressure, and economic storms.
Leadership’s Role: The Master Builder
As leaders, our role is not just to manage stakeholders—it’s to connect them. To ensure each layer is aware of its value, aligned with purpose, and bonded with trust. We must continually inspect the mortar—reinforce weak spots, repair damage, and renew our commitments to every layer of the stack.
The Stakeholder Stack is more than a metaphor. It’s a model for resilient, values-driven business. So, take a look at your wall.
- Are your values clear and embedded?
- Are your stakeholder relationships healthy and aligned?
- Is trust strong between the layers?
If not, it’s time to mix the mortar.
Paul Fioravanti, MBA, MPA, CTP, is the CEO & Managing Partner of QORVAL Partners, LLC, a FL-based advisory firm (founded 1996 by Jim Malone, six-time Fortune 100/500 CEO) Qorval is a US-based turnaround, restructuring, business optimization and interim management firm. Fioravanti is a proven turnaround CEO with experience in more than 90 situations in more than 40 industries. He earned his MBA and MPA from the University of Rhode Island and completed advanced post-master’s research in finance and marketing at Bryant University. He is a Certified Turnaround Professional and member of the Turnaround Management Association, the Private Directors Association, Association for Corporate Growth (ACG), Association of Merger & Acquisition Advisors (AM&MA), the American Bankruptcy Institute, and IMCUSA. Copyright 2025, Qorval Partners LLC and/or Paul Fioravanti, MBA, MPA, CTP. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution without permission.
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