Effective Project Management

Managing Team Communication

?It is difficult for technical team members to communicate with one another. Technical individuals are frequently poor communicators. Most of the time, they would rather be engrossed in the technical aspects of what they are working on. Nevertheless, for teammates to be truly effective, they must interact honestly with one another. That will be challenging for some; for others, it will simply be a matter of practice. In this section, we will look at the significance and role of interaction in an efficient team.

?Establishing a Communications Model

?Getting information to the relevant participants at the right moment in the project usually decides whether the project succeeds or fails. The project manager must oversee both the technical and communication processes or risk failure. It is not possible to manage all of the conversations in a project; this is a full-time job in and of itself. The project manager must analyze the needs of the project team and ensure that interaction occurs at the appropriate time and with the appropriate information. The sections that follow examine those concepts.

?Timing

?The timeliness of information is important. If the information is delivered prematurely or too late, the following issues may arise: If the information is provided too far in advance before the required action, it will be ignored. It's nearly impossible to recall information given a year ahead of time. The project manager must understand what each team member needs to know and when they need to know it so as to do their tasks. Where did you get this information? Communication requirements, like many other aspects of a project, can be found in the structure of the work breakdown (WBS). "How to Structure a TPM Project." Looking over the tasks in the WBS, you will notice that each team member must be alerted to future work and must communicate with the other collaborators whose responsibilities take precedence over their individual ones. This is something that the project's manager can do.

?A second issue with time is sending information to project team members when they need it. Remember that the project's team members may require a few days to process the information you provide them, especially if you're discussing a new technology. This necessitates that you, as the project manager, carefully manage the schedule so that all team members get as much information as possible and that they give everybody a chance to absorb and process the information in order to complete the task.

?Content

?The next communication management worry you should have been communicating the accurate information. Therefore, you must grasp what the project collaborators must know in order to succeed. If you're not sure what information the team members require, ask them. If everyone on the team are unsure, sit down with colleagues and determine what kind of information has to be provided to the team to allow for the project to go well. Sometimes you will intuitively know what information is required; other times, you may need to meet with the project's team to discuss important information needs. In any situation, you must be in the position of conveying information to those on your team at the correct time and in the proper format.

?Choosing Effective Channels

?After you've determined when communication is required for the project team to succeed and identified the basic communications topic, you must decide how to communicate the information to the other team members. As a project manager, you ought to determine how team members will convey important information to one another. You have a variety of communication channels via which to communicate. The following list examines each of the following channels:

?A face-to-face in person meeting is frequently the most effective way to communicate. You can not only get fast feedback, but you can also see the person's reaction to data through nonverbal cues. However, while this is frequently the most effective method of communication, it is not always possible.

Videoconferencing— Teleconferencing has come down drastically in price, and it is currently considerably less expensive than travelling across the nation. Not to mention the time savings. The software accessible to facilitate these kinds of meetings has grown in popularity. The list of acceptable products is constantly growing. Check the Internet for the most recent information. However, while videoconferencing allows team members to see each other, some persons are "tele nerds" and don't look good on TV. Just keep in mind that videoconferencing is not the same as face-to-face conversation.

E‐mail—Email is not, and I repeat, is not, the communication panacea that everyone believes it to be. It does have a few benefits: It is quick, you may read e-mail at your own pace, and I'm sure you all know folks who will not respond to voice mail but are quick to respond to e-mail. However, email has the following disadvantages:

Volume— Each day, many people receive numerous emails. Even if that put an exclamation point in front of it, there's a strong probability that the email you sent isn't the most visible email on the recipient's list. Be careful that e-mail is so pervasive that it lacks the visibility required to communicate vital information to others simply because there's so much e-mail "noise" out there.

Tone— Email is typically lot shorter than telephone messages, and consumers frequently mistake the intended tone if the message. It occurs. Be wary that the tone expressed in your email message may differ from that used in voice conversation.

Quality— Sending an email message doesn't render you a good writer. It is still challenging to communicate clear details to others in writing. Email is quite helpful, but keep in mind the limitations I just mentioned. Although email is a useful technology, it still demands the same level of managerial attention from the project manager as any of the other modes of communication. TIP Control the frequency with which you utilize email. If you overdo it, your communications may be rejected as spam. You must also manage your e-mail distribution list. It's simple to add another name to a distribution list, but you have to avoid doing so arbitrarily. Assume you only have a limited number of email coins to be used on and then spend them.

Written materials— These are long-term records. That is good news. If you want to maintain the records for the rest of your life, write them down. Nevertheless, as with every one of these outlets, good writing involves effort. Many people likewise struggle with writing concisely. Some people employ length to compensate for poor communication skills. Keep your writing concise and clear for the advantage of the project group.

?Phone— The phone is fantastic if you get to speak with an actual person rather than a recording message, but many individuals let the phone ring and then send you to voice mail. (The majority people are now conditioned to leave a message and be astonished when a human respond.) The telephone has the same advantages and disadvantages as the other methods. Its strength, like face-to-face communication, is in the ability to receive immediate feedback and exchange ideas. As a project manager, you are going to be on the phone a lot, either one on one or in a conference call. It is critical to manage these calls just as you would any other line of communication.

The professional project leader is cognisant all the communication patterns that must be managed in order for the team working on the project to be effective as a whole. Timing, content, and network are all aspects to consider. Although it is likely that most project managers manage communication on an ad hoc basis, it is necessary to be aware of the various areas of interaction that you can control. Communication management is as vital as any other technical skill in project management. In fact, most studies I've seen rank project communication as the most crucial aspect to manage. You may improve your project communication skills by being conversant with some of the components of project communication.

?To be an effective project manager, you must communicate not just with your team but also with multiple parties outside of the team. Your project may appear to be successful with you, but it will be meaningless until it is communicated to the appropriate people beyond the team. Then the question becomes, "Who are those right people?"

Managing Communications with the Sponsor

The dialogue that you have to the project sponsor is the single most critical communication throughout the entire project. The sponsor is the person or group of people who agreed to provide you with the resources you need to finish the project, making the sponsor your new best buddy for this project. You will be in big trouble if the sponsor does not participate in all phases of the project. This section outlines a handful of good communication tactics for managing your project sponsor.

?The dialogue that you have to the project sponsor is the single most critical communication throughout the entire project. The sponsor is the person or group of individuals who agreed to provide you with the resources you need to finish the project, making the sponsor your new best buddy for this project. You will be in big trouble if the sponsor does not participate in all phases of the project. This section outlines a handful of good communication tactics for managing your project sponsor.

Faisal Habib

www.fasons.co.uk

[email protected]