Uncovering the impediments to successful built heritage management using stakeholder analysis

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand various organizational and operational impediments to successful built heritage management at a regional level from the perspective of stakeholder theory. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory study was conducted in Jammu city of India wherein total of 16 interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire were done with officials ( N  = 6), organization members ( N  = 7), local organization heads ( N  = 3) and 30 local residents. Thematic analysis and stakeholder analysis were used to identify themes and examine the relationships between stakeholders. Findings Six themes were derived from thematic analysis. The results from stakeholder attribute analysis and studying stakeholder interactions show that lack of trust, skewed power relation and lack of communication among stakeholders are some of the factors that hinder successful heritage management at the Mubarak Mandi heritage complex. The study emphasizes the dimension of “authenticity” be added to existing discourse of heritage management in India ensuring commoditization does not override authenticity and integrity of heritage site. Originality/value The results of this study are useful in understanding challenges of heritage management in India at regional level. Using stakeholder analysis the study adds a managerial perspective to the existing heritage management discourse in India by providing empirical insights into developing stakeholder collaboration.