Project Delivery and Communicating. Communicating is spelt with a C as it is so important to keep the compunctions on a project regular and accurate.

Too many projects fail due to the right information not being Communicated at the right time in the right format, resulting in important information, escalations, decisions being made.

Some project managers don’t like to highlight an issue, slippage, problem as it may be seen as a sign of weakness. This can lead to even harder questions to answer and conversations to answer.

Communicating

Think of Communicating as a way to show how well parts of the project are proceeding, how well you are performing your role. It is not just about sharing the bad news.

Remember, no matter what the reason and situation is, at no time is it acceptable for someone to talk to you inappropriately. Even if you have made a mistake, Communication is always to be honest, open, profession, respectful!

So, what types of Communication are there? One of the simplest ways to understand and keep track of communication requirements is to create a Communication Plan. This is a list of who has to be communicated to, when, in what format, with what content is, and who will deliver it. Once this is created, publish it so that everyone knows what to expect, and what their responsibility is.

The main formats of Communication are:

• Reports
• Meetings
• Steering Groups
• 1-2-1 calls
• Networking
• Project Reviews
• Performance Reviews
• Stage Gate reviews

Kept the content relevant to the receiver

No matter what the Communication format is, kept the content relevant to the receiver and in the format, they require it. Make sure any requirements, issues are clear. Keep the different formats it a minimum. You don’t want to have to issue the same information in multiple ways.

Make sure our meetings have the relevant audience and have an agenda so everyone knows what is going to be discussed. Anything raised in the meeting that is off the agenda should be put into other meetings unless really urgent. This will stop meetings being “hijacked and over running”.

If you struggle to write reports, document, gather the information from the team, and ask someone to review it before it is published.

Ask yourself

• Who do you need to communicate, how frequently, in what format?
• What good news are you sharing about the project?
• What proposals ae you recommending for areas that are not going so well?

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