Communication Planning in Project Management

A project communication plan describes how vital information will be delivered to stakeholders and team members during the project's lifespan. Furthermore, it describes who will get certain updates, who should be informed of specific updates, how such individuals will access the information, and when they may receive them. It also outlines how frequently and for how long everyone should expect to be updated.

Communication strategies are required because effective communication is vital to the success of any endeavor. Virtually every action in a project requires communication, including getting feedback on an assignment, calling a teammate for assistance, and almost every other duty.

A communication plan in Project Management specifies specific responsibilities, expectations, due dates, parties, and how to reach them. As a result, it should be an intrinsic element of the planning process that every Project Manager initiates.

Importance of Communication Plan in Project Management

A communication management plan in Project Management is essential since it allows stakeholders, freelancers, clients, and team members to collaborate. Communication tactics will fail if there is significant project conflict or if the scope of each interaction is not established (for example, precise copy notes vs. broad suggestions). These variables can have a significant influence on project timeframes and finances.

Furthermore, the communication plan for a project establishes professional boundaries. For example, while your stakeholders may prefer email communication, if the engagement is time-sensitive, your freelancers may prefer SMS communication.

Communication planning in Project Management is essential since it aids in -
 

1. Creating written instructions that any team member may refer to at any time.

2. Maintaining complete transparency throughout the project's lifetime

3. Encouraging feedback exchange to increase productivity and prevent making the same mistakes.

4. Encouraging everyone to do their given tasks.

5. Setting expectations for each job, no matter how little it appears to be.

Advantages of a strong communication management plan in Project Management

One of the advantages of a good communication plan in Project Management is that it guarantees budget, timeline, and scope objectives are accomplished. The bulk of big communication failures may be prevented with the appropriate method.

Having a project communication plan in place ahead of time allows you to focus on the work at hand rather than remembering who said what during the initial meeting or sifting through hundreds of email chains for the most recent update.

Furthermore, an effective communication management plan saves you the time and effort of replying to individual "what's the status" emails. Your project team can respond to change, ensure effective client management, and maintain a high level of communication when you have a strategy in place to keep all stakeholders informed.

Variables that influence the efficacy of communication plan in Project Management

The following are the components of a good project communication plan:
 

1. A contact sheet summarises the duties and contact information for project contributors at each stage.
    

2. Keep a record of all project-related information, such as meeting updates and subject summaries.
    

3. Incorporate the five Ws of virtual communication into each fundamental form of communication (who, what, where, when, and why).
    

4. Highlight key aspects of formality, personal pronouns, and unique partner expectations.
    

5. Make an event calendar to keep track of any scheduled phone conversations, virtual status meetings, and digital check-ins.
    

6. Specify the kind of status updates that will be made, where they will be issued, and who will be responsible for them.
    

7. Assign reviewers to initiatives that require their involvement.
    

8. For each principal form of communication, identify the medium of communication, date/time, and frequency.

What Should a Communication Management Plan in Project Management Include?

While the specifics of the project communication plan may differ depending on the type and magnitude of the project, any communication strategy should cover the following topics:
 

1. Create a list of all critical stakeholders, including your primary point of contact with clients. Include contact information like phone numbers and email addresses so that anyone looking at the communication plan may readily discover it.
    

2. Include essential members of your project's team as well as their positions. This is useful for anyone who is unskilled or unfamiliar with the projector. Indicate who on your team will be in charge of communicating deliverables, organizing strategic meetings, and resolving technical differences between stakeholders and your team.
    

3. Describe your key communication methods and channels with stakeholders, such as email, phone calls, in-person meetings, video meetings, Slack, and social media. Keep track of how you prefer to communicate with stakeholders.
    

4. Specify the forms of communication, how they will be provided, the material that will be contained, and who will have access to them. For example, you may provide your customer with weekly progress updates. Think about how the report will be disseminated, who will get it, and what information should be included.
    

5. This may be divided into two categories based on the stakeholder and the means of communication. Is there a certain stakeholder that likes only formal communication, or may a more casual tone be used
    

6. Establish an early timetable for meeting with stakeholders, which may need to be altered as the project progresses. Depending on the project's complexity, you may also want to mention how frequently you will contact the customer through email. Meetings with internal teams should also be included in your meeting schedule
    

7. Determine the critical message or information that must be communicated to each stakeholder throughout the project. This includes any information or feedback they may offer you.
    

8. Communication goals: Having a communication plan that includes communication goals will help you make decisions that are in line with your goals.

How is Communication Planning in Project Management Takes Place?

A project communication strategy might be as basic as a high-level overview or as thorough as a detailed plan. For simple, easy actions, the summary is usually sufficient. For more complex projects, further information may be necessary.

The following are key steps to consider while developing a project communication plan:
 

1. Determine the team's communication needs.

Various communication methods are required for various tasks. Take into account the following: What requirements must be satisfied for this project to be successful?

For example, a project in a highly regulated market may necessitate frequent communication with a regulatory authority. Maintaining content on a company's website, on the other hand, may include both user input and material from contractors such as photographers and graphic designers.

The following are some guidelines for determining communication requirements:
 

• Familiarize yourself with the methods that will be followed during the project's lifespan: Consider all of the tasks, activities, and resources that will be needed from beginning to end. You may then decide which project stakeholders need to be communicated with.
   

• Collect input from various stakeholder groups on their preferred communication methods, the frequency with which they expect to receive information, and so on.
   

2. Determine the goal of the communication.

Each communication event must have a clear goal. If you call a hasty meeting for no reason, you are most likely hindering people's ability to do their duties.

Suggestions for defining your communication goal:
 

• Determine the goal: This goal might be anything, but in general, each communication item should educate or enlighten stakeholders — and, in certain situations, request feedback. A virtual conference may be held prior to the start of a project "to define the initiative, answer any questions, create connections with stakeholders, and elicit their support for the endeavor."
   

• Agendas for meetings or reports should be created as follows: A basic strategy can help keep sessions on track and productive.

3. Select a communication method.

Furthermore, the communication strategy specifies the communication approaches or styles to be employed for certain communication items.

The following are some suggestions for choosing a form of communication:
 

• Keep team members' attention without losing productivity: For example, you don't want to schedule a daily meeting or a stand-up presentation to offer information that can be sent via email or the team's virtual discussion board.
   

• Choose the technique that is most suited to the audience type: Some stakeholders, such as the project sponsor, may prefer phone or video conference calls to email or other forms of contact.
   

• Certain communication styles are required in certain situations: The most effective approach to offering feedback on work performance is a one-on-one, in-person meeting. A group meeting is essential for fulfilling milestones and conducting project post-mortems. If your company is geographically dispersed or your employees are always on the go, you'll need a cloud-based communication solution that works on any device.

4. Determine the frequency of communication.

Communication that is insufficient or excessive may be damaging to the project. For example, if you send too many emails, receivers may miss important information owing to a clogged inbox or an avalanche of irrelevant communications.

Suggestions for determining communication frequency:
 

• The goal is to keep everyone up to date, thus weekly progress reports via video conference call and Monday emails summarising what has been achieved so far are appropriate. The idea is that there are several strategies for creating a feedback loop and bringing everyone together; thus, experiment to find which plan works best for your team.
   

• Consider stakeholders' preferences: the project sponsor may like daily updates, whilst the client may prefer weekly reports.

5. Assign communication responsibilities to stakeholders and owners.

Typically, the Project Manager is in charge of information distribution — both downward to team members and upward to executives and senior management, as well as other project stakeholders. Certain types of communication, on the other hand, may necessitate delegation.

Some ideas for communication owner designations are as follows:
 

• Determine who will be held responsible for each communication event: This instills accountability and allows owners to plan ahead of time.
   

• Determine the intended audience for each method of communication: Send only the most relevant message to the most relevant audience. This is done to prevent people from being inundated with useless and needless information. 

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Conclusion

Effective communication plan in Project Management is both an art and a science, with the latter being founded on principles, standards, and methods and the former being enhanced by practice and experience. For connecting people and avoiding mayhem!  a robust Project Management communication plan is essential.