Search Your Query..

Custom Search

Creating a Communications Plan Management Project Management

The best way to communicate consistently and in an organized form is to write down your communications plan. First, you need to create a plan describing the types of communication you will distribute and the methods by which you will distribute them. You will need to describe the strategy and tactics you are using for communication in this plan. If your project is complex, and you have many stakeholders, your strategy and tactics for communicating will need to be far more formal and organized than if your project is small and you have few stakeholders. You will also create a communication matrix as part of this plan, which will list all of your communication methods and the stakeholders who will receive the communication. You will describe the communication forms and when they will receive their information.

Components of a Communication Management Plan
A thorough communications management plan incorporates many details. First, you need to determine how and where you will store your project information. You need to decide the structure of the filing methods you will be using: electronic or hard copy. This plan will be published to team members so they know how to get information, and where they should store the project information they create. Your plan for storage should also include procedures for documentation and communication management.

Your communications plan should include a communication matrix explaining who receives information, what the information is, when it will be distributed, and how it will be distributed. Also, you need to provide your team members with a description of the format and content for each of the kinds of information that will be distributed. For instance, if you listed status report for one of the information types, you would describe the data that will be captured in the status report. This matrix makes you pre-plan all of the formats you will use. You may also include a schedule for each type of information so it’s clear when it will be produced.

Your team will need procedures for getting information between regularly scheduled communications, and you need to provide the methods for updating the communications plan itself as the project proceeds.

Creating a Communication Management Plan
Creating a communications plan is absolutely essential on a medium or large-sized project, and by sticking to it you’ll prove to your organization that you are consistent and in control of the communication and, by implication, the project itself. Following are the steps you should take to create a communication management plan:

Decide on an overall strategy for your communication. You will need to describe how you are going to handle communication and why. For instance, you might state that you are going to manage communication on a very formal basis, with meetings and follow-up documents at all times, because you have a large project. You might state that you will require a part-time communication manager on your project because of its complexity, or that you may need help from the public relations staff because you will publish information to the media.

Describe how you will store information and how your team will retrieve information. For instance, you might state that you will keep all documents on the network drive and provide the directory name and file structure for all the project information. This policy will keep the directory from becoming unusable because people put documents wherever they think they should. You should also provide procedures as to how the team or stakeholders should use this structure.

Create a communication matrix. Make sure you create it thoroughly, by answering the basic questions of who, what, where, when, why, and how. You might consider including the following information: what is the information (such as status report), who will use the information (per stakeholder groups), when will it be published (such as weekly, as needed, or daily), and how the stakeholders will receive it (such as via e-mail attachments, presentation, or meeting). You will have an example form to use for your exercise. You might even think about creating the matrix for each phase of the project (concept, design, execution, finish) because the information needs and frequency may change.

Create a form and example content for each type of information listed in the matrix above, or refer to where the form can be found. For instance, create a status report form. Show all of the fields of data you want to be included, such as dates covered, objectives and accomplishments for the status time frame, hot topics, issues, or action items. Make sure you describe what would go into each field.

Describe procedures for how your team and stakeholders will request and obtain information outside of normal distribution times. For instance, by detailing that the media must contact the PR department first if they have a question, everyone on the project will know what to tell the media if they should get a call from a reporter.

Describe in the communication management plan how changes will be made and approved for the plan itself. If you have found you need another form of communication as you move into the execution stage, you will need to write a procedure to ensure your team knows about the new communication form, and that you add the information to the plan itself.