ISO 21502:2020 Cluase 7.13 Communication management

Project Management 11 Minutes

7.13.1 Overview

The purpose of communication management is to enable stakeholder interactions that are effective and likely to contribute to the successful delivery of the project’s outcomes and the successful realization of benefits.
The communications approaches and methods chosen should be planned and documented. The success or failure of a project can depend on the effectiveness of communications and the degree to which the communications engage the stakeholders.
Planned communication activities should be carried out to understand the information needs of the stakeholders, including the level of information and frequency of communication. Planned communication activities should be monitored for effectiveness.

Communication management in project management involves planning, executing, monitoring, and controlling the flow of information within a project and between stakeholders. It encompasses a systematic approach to ensure that the right information is provided to the right people at the right time and in the right format to support project success. Effective communication management facilitates collaboration, promotes transparency, and fosters alignment among project stakeholders. Here are key aspects of communication management in project management:

  1. Stakeholder Identification: Communication management begins with identifying project stakeholders and understanding their communication needs, preferences, and expectations. This involves identifying internal and external stakeholders, assessing their level of influence and interest in the project, and determining their communication requirements.
  2. Communication Planning: Communication management involves developing a comprehensive communication plan that outlines the communication objectives, strategies, channels, and frequency for project communication. The communication plan specifies how project information will be shared, who will be responsible for communication activities, and how communication effectiveness will be monitored and evaluated throughout the project lifecycle.
  3. Information Distribution: Communication management entails distributing project information to stakeholders in a timely, accurate, and relevant manner. This may include disseminating project updates, status reports, meeting minutes, and other relevant documents to stakeholders using various communication channels such as email, meetings, presentations, or project management software.
  4. Feedback Collection: Communication management involves collecting feedback from stakeholders on project communication effectiveness, stakeholder satisfaction, and areas for improvement. This may involve conducting surveys, interviews, or feedback sessions to solicit input from stakeholders on their communication experiences and preferences.
  5. Issue Resolution: Communication management includes addressing communication issues, concerns, or conflicts that arise during the project. This may involve resolving misunderstandings, clarifying expectations, and addressing stakeholder concerns through effective communication strategies and conflict resolution techniques.
  6. Change Management Communication: Communication management plays a crucial role in change management by effectively communicating changes to project scope, objectives, or plans to stakeholders. This involves explaining the rationale for changes, outlining their impacts, and soliciting stakeholder input and support to facilitate smooth change implementation.
  7. Risk Communication: Communication management involves communicating project risks, uncertainties, and mitigation strategies to stakeholders. This includes identifying potential communication risks, such as misinterpretation of information or lack of stakeholder engagement, and implementing proactive communication measures to address these risks.
  8. Performance Reporting: Communication management entails reporting project performance metrics, progress, and achievements to stakeholders. This includes providing regular updates on project milestones, budget status, schedule adherence, and quality performance to keep stakeholders informed and engaged in project activities.

Overall, effective communication management is essential for project success as it ensures that project stakeholders are informed, engaged, and aligned with project goals and objectives. By implementing a structured approach to communication management, project teams can enhance collaboration, mitigate risks, and achieve project outcomes efficiently.

The purpose of communication management is to enable stakeholder interactions that are effective and likely to contribute to the successful delivery of the project’s outcomes and the successful realization of benefits.

Communication management in project management refers to the systematic planning, implementation, monitoring, and control of communication processes within a project. Its purpose is to ensure that information is effectively and efficiently exchanged among project stakeholders to support project objectives and facilitate project success. Here are the key components of communication management:

  1. Stakeholder Identification: Communication management begins with identifying all project stakeholders, including internal and external parties who have an interest in or may be impacted by the project. This includes project sponsors, team members, clients, suppliers, regulatory bodies, and other relevant individuals or organizations.
  2. Communication Planning: This involves developing a comprehensive communication plan that outlines the communication needs, objectives, strategies, and methods for the project. The communication plan specifies what information needs to be communicated, to whom, how often, through what channels, and by whom. It also defines roles and responsibilities for communication management within the project team.
  3. Information Distribution: Once the communication plan is in place, project teams distribute relevant information to stakeholders according to the plan. This includes sharing project updates, status reports, deliverables, schedules, milestones, risks, issues, and other relevant information to keep stakeholders informed and engaged throughout the project lifecycle.
  4. Feedback Collection: Communication management involves soliciting feedback from stakeholders to ensure that their concerns, opinions, and suggestions are heard and addressed. Project teams establish mechanisms for collecting feedback through surveys, meetings, focus groups, interviews, or other means to assess stakeholder satisfaction, identify issues, and make necessary adjustments to communication strategies.
  5. Communication Monitoring: Project teams monitor communication processes to ensure that information is flowing effectively and that stakeholders are receiving the information they need on time. This involves tracking communication activities, analyzing communication effectiveness, identifying bottlenecks or gaps in communication, and taking corrective actions as needed to improve communication processes.
  6. Issue Resolution: Communication management includes addressing communication-related issues or conflicts that may arise during the project. This may involve clarifying misunderstandings, resolving disputes, managing expectations, or renegotiating communication agreements to ensure that communication barriers are minimized, and stakeholder relationships are maintained.
  7. Performance Reporting: Communication management involves reporting project performance to stakeholders through regular status updates, progress reports, or other communication channels. Project teams provide stakeholders with accurate and timely information about project progress, achievements, challenges, and changes to maintain transparency and accountability.
  8. Documentation Management: Communication management includes maintaining accurate records of project communication, including meeting minutes, correspondence, decision logs, and other documentation. Documenting project communication ensures that important information is captured, archived, and accessible for future reference or audit purposes.

By effectively managing communication processes, project teams can enhance stakeholder engagement, foster collaboration, build trust, mitigate risks, and ultimately increase the likelihood of project success. Communication management is a critical aspect of project management that requires careful planning, execution, and monitoring throughout the project lifecycle.

The communications approaches and methods chosen should be planned and documented.

Planning and documenting communication approaches and methods are essential aspects of communication management in project management. Here’s why it’s important:

  1. Clarity and Consistency: Planning communication approaches and methods ensure that project teams have a clear and consistent understanding of how communication will be conducted throughout the project lifecycle. Documenting these approaches and methods provides a reference point for all stakeholders, helping to avoid confusion and misunderstandings.
  2. Alignment with Objectives: By planning communication approaches and methods, project teams can ensure that communication activities are aligned with project objectives, goals, and stakeholder needs. Documenting these approaches and methods helps to maintain focus on achieving desired outcomes and delivering value to stakeholders through effective communication.
  3. Tailoring to Stakeholder Preferences: Different stakeholders may have varying preferences for communication methods, frequency, and content. Planning communication approaches allows project teams to tailor communication strategies to the preferences and needs of specific stakeholder groups. Documenting these approaches ensures that stakeholders’ communication preferences are taken into account and consistently applied throughout the project.
  4. Risk Management: Effective communication management involves identifying and mitigating communication risks that may impact project success. By planning communication approaches and methods, project teams can anticipate potential communication challenges, such as language barriers, cultural differences, or technological limitations, and develop strategies to address them proactively. Documenting these approaches enables project teams to track and manage communication risks over time.
  5. Resource Allocation: Planning communication approaches helps project teams allocate resources, such as time, budget, and personnel, effectively to support communication activities. Documenting these approaches enables project teams to track resource utilization, identify areas for optimization, and ensure that sufficient resources are allocated to critical communication tasks.
  6. Continuous Improvement: Documenting communication approaches and methods provides a basis for evaluating the effectiveness of communication strategies and identifying opportunities for improvement. By tracking communication outcomes and lessons learned throughout the project lifecycle, project teams can refine their approaches over time to enhance communication effectiveness and stakeholder engagement.

Overall, planning and documenting communication approaches and methods are essential for ensuring clear, consistent, and effective communication throughout the project lifecycle. By taking a systematic approach to communication management, project teams can enhance stakeholder engagement, manage communication risks, and increase the likelihood of project success.

The success or failure of a project can depend on the effectiveness of communications and the degree to which the communications engage the stakeholders.

The effectiveness of communication plays a crucial role in determining the success or failure of a project. Here’s why:

  1. Clarity of Objectives and Expectations: Effective communication ensures that project objectives, requirements, and expectations are communicated to all stakeholders. When stakeholders have a clear understanding of the project’s goals and their roles in achieving them, they are more likely to align their efforts and resources accordingly, reducing the risk of misunderstandings or misalignment.
  2. Stakeholder Engagement and Support: Engaging stakeholders through effective communication fosters their commitment, support, and active involvement in the project. When stakeholders feel informed, valued, and included in project activities, they are more likely to contribute positively to the project’s success by providing feedback, offering expertise, and advocating for the project’s interests within their respective organizations or communities.
  3. Risk Identification and Management: Effective communication facilitates the timely identification and management of project risks. When project teams maintain open channels of communication with stakeholders, they can quickly identify emerging risks, issues, or concerns and take proactive measures to mitigate or address them before they escalate into major problems that could jeopardize project success.
  4. Problem-Solving and Decision-Making: Communication is essential for facilitating problem-solving and decision-making processes within the project team and among stakeholders. By promoting open dialogue, collaboration, and information-sharing, effective communication enables project teams to identify solutions, evaluate alternatives, and make informed decisions that align with project objectives and stakeholder interests.
  5. Adaptability and Change Management: In dynamic and uncertain project environments, effective communication is critical for managing change and adapting to evolving circumstances. When project teams communicate openly and transparently about changes in project scope, requirements, or priorities, stakeholders are better prepared to understand and adapt to these changes, minimizing resistance and maximizing project flexibility and resilience.
  6. Project Performance and Quality: The quality of project outcomes is directly influenced by the quality of communication throughout the project lifecycle. When project teams communicate effectively, they can coordinate activities, monitor progress, and address issues promptly, leading to improved project performance and deliverable quality. Conversely, poor communication can lead to delays, rework, and quality issues that compromise project success.

In summary, effective communication is a cornerstone of successful project management. By engaging stakeholders, facilitating collaboration, managing risks, enabling decision-making, and promoting adaptability, effective communication enhances project outcomes, fosters stakeholder satisfaction, and increases the likelihood of project success. Conversely, ineffective communication can lead to misunderstandings, conflicts, and missed opportunities, undermining project performance and jeopardizing project success. Therefore, project teams must prioritize communication management as a strategic imperative to achieve their project objectives and deliver value to stakeholders.

Planned communication activities should be carried out to understand the information needs of the stakeholders, including the level of information and frequency of communication.

Planned communication activities are essential for understanding the information needs of stakeholders and ensuring that communication efforts are tailored to meet those needs effectively. Here’s how planned communication activities can help address stakeholders’ information needs:

  1. Stakeholder Analysis: Planned communication activities often begin with a thorough stakeholder analysis to identify the individuals, groups, or organizations involved in or impacted by the project. Through stakeholder analysis, project teams can assess stakeholders’ roles, interests, expectations, communication preferences, and information needs.
  2. Information Gathering: Planned communication activities involve gathering information from stakeholders to understand their information needs and preferences. This may include conducting surveys, interviews, focus groups, or workshops to solicit input, feedback, or requirements from stakeholders regarding the project’s goals, scope, timelines, deliverables, risks, and other relevant aspects.
  3. Needs Assessment: Planned communication activities aim to assess stakeholders’ information needs in terms of the level of detail, format, timing, and frequency of communication. Project teams may use needs assessment tools, such as communication preference surveys or stakeholder interviews, to determine how stakeholders prefer to receive information, how often they want to be updated, and what types of information are most relevant and useful to them.
  4. Communication Planning: Based on the information gathered from stakeholders, project teams develop a comprehensive communication plan that outlines the communication objectives, strategies, channels, schedules, and responsibilities for the project. The communication plan specifies how information will be communicated to stakeholders, taking into account their information needs, preferences, and expectations.
  5. Tailored Communication: Planned communication activities ensure that communication efforts are tailored to meet the specific information needs of different stakeholder groups. Project teams customize communication messages, formats, and channels to address stakeholders’ preferences, interests, and concerns, maximizing the relevance and effectiveness of communication efforts.
  6. Feedback Mechanisms: Planned communication activities include establishing feedback mechanisms to allow stakeholders to provide input, ask questions, or express concerns about project-related information. Project teams create opportunities for stakeholders to provide feedback through various channels, such as meetings, surveys, suggestion boxes, or dedicated communication platforms, and they use this feedback to adjust communication strategies as needed.

By carrying out planned communication activities to understand stakeholders’ information needs, project teams can ensure that communication efforts are targeted, relevant, and responsive to stakeholders’ preferences and expectations. This approach fosters engagement, transparency, and trust among stakeholders, leading to improved communication outcomes and increased project success.

Planned communication activities should be monitored for effectiveness.

Monitoring planned communication activities for effectiveness is crucial to ensure that communication efforts are achieving their intended objectives and meeting the needs of stakeholders. Here’s why monitoring communication activities is important:

  1. Evaluation of Communication Outcomes: Monitoring planned communication activities allows project teams to assess the effectiveness of their communication efforts in achieving desired outcomes. By tracking communication outcomes, such as stakeholder engagement levels, understanding of project objectives, and satisfaction with the information provided, project teams can evaluate whether their communication strategies are yielding the desired results.
  2. Identification of Communication Gaps or Barriers: Monitoring communication activities helps project teams identify any gaps or barriers that may be hindering effective communication with stakeholders. By monitoring feedback, response rates, or engagement metrics, project teams can pinpoint areas where communication is falling short or where stakeholders are experiencing difficulties accessing or understanding information.
  3. Real-Time Adjustment of Communication Strategies: Effective monitoring enables project teams to make real-time adjustments to their communication strategies based on emerging feedback or insights. If certain communication channels or messages are not resonating with stakeholders, project teams can pivot to alternative approaches or refine their messaging to better meet stakeholders’ needs and preferences.
  4. Continuous Improvement: Monitoring communication activities fosters a culture of continuous improvement within the project team. By regularly reviewing and analyzing communication performance, project teams can identify lessons learned, best practices, and areas for enhancement to inform future communication efforts. This iterative approach allows project teams to adapt and refine their communication strategies over time, leading to increased effectiveness and stakeholder satisfaction.
  5. Risk Management: Monitoring communication activities helps project teams mitigate communication risks and address potential issues before they escalate. By proactively identifying communication challenges or misunderstandings, project teams can take corrective actions to address root causes, clarify information, or reinforce key messages to prevent miscommunication or stakeholder dissatisfaction.
  6. Demonstration of Accountability: Monitoring communication activities demonstrates the project team’s accountability and commitment to stakeholder engagement and transparency. By tracking communication performance and outcomes, project teams can provide evidence of their efforts to keep stakeholders informed, involved, and satisfied, enhancing trust and credibility with stakeholders and project sponsors.

Overall, monitoring planned communication activities for effectiveness is essential for ensuring that communication efforts are aligned with project objectives, responsive to stakeholders’ needs, and contributing to project success. By adopting a proactive approach to communication monitoring and adjustment, project teams can maximize the impact of their communication efforts and enhance stakeholder engagement, satisfaction, and ultimately, project outcomes.

Published by Pretesh Biswas

Pretesh Biswas has wealth of qualifications and experience in providing results-oriented solutions for your system development, training or auditing needs. He has helped dozens of organizations in implementing effective management systems to a number of standards. He provide a unique blend of specialized knowledge, experience, tools and interactive skills to help you develop systems that not only get certified, but also contribute to the bottom line. He has taught literally hundreds of students over the past 5 years. He has experience in training at hundreds of organizations in several industry sectors. His training is unique in that which can be customized as to your management system and activities and deliver them at your facility. This greatly accelerates the learning curve and application of the knowledge acquired. He is now ex-Certification body lead auditor now working as consultancy auditor. He has performed hundreds of audits in several industry sectors. As consultancy auditor, he not just report findings, but provide value-added service in recommending appropriate solutions. Experience Consultancy: He has helped over 100 clients in a wide variety of industries achieve ISO 9001,14001,27001,20000, OHSAS 18001 and TS 16949 certification. Industries include automotive, metal stamping and screw machine, fabrication, machining, assembly, Forging electrostatic and chrome plating, heat-treating, coatings, glass, plastic and rubber products, electrical and electronic equipment, assemblies & components, batteries, computer hardware and software, printing, placement and Security help, warehousing and distribution, repair facilities, consumer credit counseling agencies, banks, call centers, etc. Training: He has delivered public and on-site quality management training to over 1000 students. Courses include ISO/TS -RAB approved Lead Auditor, Internal Auditing, Implementation, Documentation, as well as customized ISO/TS courses, PPAP, FMEA, APQP and Control Plans. Auditing: He has conducted over 100 third party registration and surveillance audits and dozens of gap, internal and pre-assessment audits to ISO/QS/TS Standards, in the manufacturing and service sectors. Other services: He has provided business planning, restructuring, asset management, systems and process streamlining services to a variety of manufacturing and service clients such as printing, plastics, automotive, transportation and custom brokerage, warehousing and distribution, electrical and electronics, trading, equipment leasing, etc. Education & professional certification: Pretesh Biswas has held IRCA certified Lead Auditor for ISO 9001,14001 and 27001. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering and is a MBA in Systems and Marketing. Prior to becoming a business consultant 6 years ago, he has worked in several portfolios such as Marketing, operations, production, Quality and customer care. He is also certified in Six Sigma Black belt .

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