10.1 Plan Communications

Start

"The process of developing an appropriate approach and plan for project communications based on stakeholders’ information needs and requirements and available organisational assets."

The definition shown above in italics is taken from the Glossary of the Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Fifth Edition, Project Management Institute Inc., 2013

Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Fifth Edition, Project Management Institute Inc., 2013 Figure 10-2 Page 289

Communications

Communications is always vital. In a large project it can consume a lot of effort.

Communication Cascade(s)

May require communication specialists.

Actors/Celebrities to show/make the message
Specialists to identify and create the message which is clear and consistent with what the sender wants to send and the receiver needs to hear -> understanding

Purpose is to:

Provide information/knowledge
Give the basis for change
Inspire/persuade people
Create a mass of desire in the change subjects

Remember – the PMP exam assumes you are a PM for a very large project, and all project processes apply

Tools and Techniques

Communications Requirements Analysis

Who needs what information
To what level of detail
When is it required
What format will it be given in
What value will it add (could it be done better another way)
Confidentiality (internal/external)
Security / delegated access

Could do this when carrying out a stakeholder analysis (13.1 Identify Stakeholders)

Communication Channels

N = number of channels of communication possible in a group n= number of stakeholders in the group

A formula to remember

You are a PM for the WYZ project and have 24 stakeholders. Which option gives the right number of communication channels?

A 650 B 525 C 300 D 276

Communications Technology

Technology factors which may affect the project communications include:

Urgency of the need for information.
Availability of technology.
Expected project staffing.
Length of the project.
Project environment.

Communication Model

Encode
Message
Conveying medium
Noise – interference, barriers
Decode

Responsibility of sender to verify if receiver correctly understood the message

Communication Factors

Considerations:

Urgency
Speed
Availability
Costs of technology
Project Environment
Suitability/ease of use
Co-location or Remote Working

Barriers

Noise
Medium not appropriate
Emotions
Feelings
Poor listening skills (active versus passive listening)
Language difficulties: eg.President John F Kennedy saying Ich bin ein Berliner – instead of Ich bin Berliner (I am a doughnut, not I am a Berliner!) when arriving in Germany

Communication methods

Interactive

Multi directional – meetings, phone calls, video conferencing, skype, face time, video cascades

Push

Information targeted to particular people with a need for it – letters, memos, reports, emails, faxes, voice mails, text/sms, press releases

Pull

Large volumes of information; large audiences - sharepoint portals, intranets, discussion databases; e-learning suites; e-libraries Co-location – working in the same room War Room - Bunker for special meetings

Communications Planning

Identifies:

Stakeholder communication requirements
Information to be communicated – Incl. content and level of detail
Who will communicate the information
Recipients of the information
Methods / technologies to be used
Frequency and format of the communication
Who will authorise release of confidential information
Flowchart showing activity sequence and decision points
Escalation process
- Time frames
- Route
Method of updating and refining the Communications Management Plan
Constraints and Glossary

Part of the Communications Plan