Project communication management

Project communication management is the knowledge area (PMBOK) that includes the processes required to ensure timely and appropriate planning, collection, creation, distribution, storage, retrieval, management, control, monitoring and ultimate disposition of project information. It provides the critical links among people and information needed for successful communication.

Processes (PMBOK 5th edition)

1. Plan communications management (Planning): analyse information needs and develop the communication management plan.
2. Manage communications (Executing): create, collect, distribute, store and retrieve information; this includes information distribution and performance reporting.
3. Control communications (Monitoring and controlling): monitor and control communications to ensure stakeholder information needs are met.

(Earlier editions: identify stakeholders, plan communications, distribute information, manage stakeholder expectations, report performance.)

Plan -> Manage (distribute, report) -> Control
  ^__________ updates ______________|

Key concepts

• Communication model: sender, encode, message, medium, decode, receiver, feedback, noise.
• Methods: interactive (meetings, calls), push (email, reports), pull (intranet, repository).
• Types: formal/informal, written/oral, verbal/non-verbal, upward/downward/lateral.
• Number of channels = n(n − 1)/2.
• Barriers: noise, language, culture, distance, jargon, overload.
• Communication competencies: listening, questioning, educating, fact-finding, setting expectations, persuading and resolving conflict.

Outputs

Communication management plan, project communications, work performance information, change requests, and updates to the plan, project documents and OPA.

Importance

Prevents misunderstanding, keeps stakeholders informed and supports control of the project.

Example: In a software project, the manager sends a weekly status report, holds sprint reviews with the client, keeps issues in a shared tracker, and monitors whether stakeholders are satisfied with the information they receive.