Project Communication management
The 9 topic areas of project management knowledge
Coomunication is one of the 9 topic areas of project management knowledge.
Communication Management Plan defines how and when the various stakeholders receive information, and communicate with each other.
Most of the time of task managers is actually devoted to communication. The project manager spends an average of 90% of her time in communicating. Proper communication management is therefore essential for team Efficiencyand Effectiveness. Aslo accountability and transparency are dependent on the way communication is managed in the process.
Managing the required project communications, as most of projecect activities, requires communications planning and that planning requires from the very beginning involving the project stakeholders so as to make partecipated decisions and conform to the needs and expections of all actors involved.
In the methodology section of the Project Plan Document there can be a sub-section dealing with communicanion management. If not it would be a good idea to agree on a communication plan at an early phase of project execution.
The communication plan describes how the information and communication needs of project stakeholders will be met: a communication manager will design, and implement such a plan; thereafter s/he will evaluate how efficient and efficacious communication has been as a support activity facilitating all other project tasks.
Never underestimate communication in project management. Communicate well, and the project will succeed. Communicate poorly, and even the most efficient efforts may be misperceived, misunderstood and poorly valued.
Project communication management includes the processes required to ensure timely and appropriate generation, collection, dissemination, storage, and ultimate disposition of project information. In the the project execution phase, communication management is the implementation of the plan and involves essentially two processes:
Information Distribution
Performance Reporting
See also Communicationg with the team in the section on Manage the Project Team
As a project progresses, events may occur to alter the way information is
accessed or change communications requirements. During Project Execution, the
Project Manager and Project Team must again review whether the Communications plan is
still current and applicable to the present phase of the
project.
In addition to having a solid Communications Plan in place, it is the responsibility of members of the Project Team to exercise good communication skill . Communication skill is critical to keeping your stakeholders informed, supportive, and enthusiastic. Smart planning and consistent information delivery keeps your project on track and helps avoid confusion.
When composing correspondence, progress reports, meeting minutes, etc., and when speaking with individuals face to face, the team members are responsible for clear, unambiguous, and complete communication of information. The receiver, in turn, must be sure information is not only received correctly and completely, but that it is understood. During Project Execution, the Project Manager, Project Team, and Stakeholders will share information using a variety of communication mechanisms.
See Tasks, tools and elements of communication management
Project management demands a free flow of communication with and among project team members, and internal and external project stakeholders. The project team needs frequent information from each of its team members to complete and improve the project and to understand the needs and expectations of the project's beneficiaries. Project Communication management is the systematic planning, implementing, monitoring, and revision of the exchnage of information amongst the project team and the project stakeholders . Project communication management aims at timely and appropriate generation, collection, dissemination, storage, and ultimate disposition of project information and knowledge.
Types of Project Communication |
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In the structure of the project, communication management is considered one of the facilitating processes (along with quality planning, staff acquisition, risk response planning, procurement planning, solicitation planning). "Facilitating" does not mean unessential or optional: it only means that it is a process that varies in the sequence, is performed in parallel with other activities, have a two-way feedback loop with many core processes. (core processes of project management instead are performed sequentially and are divided into three main phases, i.e. project planning, project execution, project closure).
Attention: There is an
important difference between Project communication and organizational communication
Communication among all project stakeholders is one of the main factors for the project success. It is a prerequisite of getting the things done in the right way and in the right time. Knowledge is power: sharing knowledge is reciprocal empowering amongst project stakeholders.
While executing the plan, the Project Manager must be aware of how the organization will use the information, and whether the plan is effective. He/she must be flexible and ready to modify the plan if portions of it are not working as expected or communications needs change within the Performing Organization. Of the many mechanisms available to the Project Manager, status reporting is particularly useful for communicating the performance of a project.
Project Team members must complete Progress Reports providing regular feedback to the Project Manager. These reports can serve a dual purpose – as a reporting mechanism to the Project Manager and also to the team member’s immediate supervisor. Progress Reports should document detailed descriptions of actual work accomplished and include Team members’ estimates of the effort they feel will be required to complete tasks. Progress Reports should also contain information regarding work to be done in upcoming weeks, and list any issues preventing completion of required tasks.
When correctly completed by the Project Team, the reports are very useful to the Project Manager for updating the Project Schedule, and for anticipating issues and proactively planning ways for their resolution. Using the Progress Reports prepared by the Project Team, the Project Manager should complete a Status Report to be presented to the Project Sponsor. In this report, the Project Manager measures the “health and progress” of the project against the Project Plan.
Templates:
The Project Manager should periodically assemble the Project Team to review the
status of the project, discuss their accomplishments, and communicate any issues
or concerns in an open, honest, constructive forum. These meetings are ideal
opportunities for the Project Manager to gain insight into the day-to-day
activities of Project Team members, especially if the team is large and
individual interaction between the Project Manager and each team member is
infrequent.
During the meeting the Project Manager should review the Project Schedule with
the team and verify with each member the work that needs to be accomplished in
upcoming weeks. Part of the meeting should focus on the team’s Progress Reports,
to verify estimates to complete tasks and to discuss issues that may impact
estimates. The Project Manager can then use information communicated during the
Project Team meetings as input to the Status Report.
The regularly-scheduled Project Team meeting is also a good forum to recognize
individual accomplishments, and to reward team members for outstanding work.
Guidelines
Templates:
Project Status Report Template 1 - Prokject Status report template 2
Excel project communication Template 1 -
See also: T
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