Project Communication Management

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About this lesson

Communication is at the heart of project management.  These processes provide guidance on project communication.

Quick reference

Project Communication Management

Communication is at the heart of project management.  These processes provide guidance on project communication.

When to use

Virtually everything a project manager does involves communication.  Some or all of these processes apply throughout the project lifecycle.

Instructions

Project Communications Management

“Project Communication Management includes the processes that are required to ensure timely and appropriate planning, collection, creation, distribution, storage, retrieval, management, control, monitoring, and ultimate disposition of project information.” PMBOK® Guide

Effective communications are an essential part of project management.  Virtually everything a project manager does involves communication. In today’s environment, there are numerous communication technologies available.  The project manager should use whatever technologies are commonly found among members of the project team and stakeholder community.  Normally project managers will need to be skilled at written and oral communication, formal presentations and informal discussions, and communicating with all levels of the organization.  On some projects, the project manager will also need to be skilled at communicating with the public and press.  One of the best core competencies a project manager can develop is communication skills.

Project Communications Management Processes

There are three Project Communication Management Processes.  They relate to each other as shown in the diagram below.  The three processes are:

  • 10.1 Plan Communications Management: “The process of developing an appropriate approach and plan for project communication activities based on the information needs of each stakeholder or group, available organizational assets, and the needs of the project.” PMBOK® Guide
  • 10.2 Manage Communications: “The process of ensuring timely and appropriate collection, creation, distribution, storage, retrieval, management, monitoring and the ultimate disposition of project information.” PMBOK® Guide
  • 10.3 Monitor Communications: “The process of ensuring the information needs of the project and the stakeholders are met.” PMBOK® Guide

Project Information

Within the PMBOK® Guide, there is a hierarchical flow of project information. 

  1. Direct and Manage Project Work (4.3) creates Work Performance Data.
  2. Work Performance Data is converted into Work Performance Information in the following processes:
    1. Validate Scope (5.5)
    2. Control Scope (5.6)
    3. Control Schedule (6.6)
    4. Control Costs (7.4)
    5. Control Quality (8.3)
    6. Control Resources (9.6)
    7. Monitor Communication (10.3)
    8. Monitor Risks (11.7)
    9. Control Procurements (12.3)
    10. Monitor Stakeholder Engagement (13.4).
  3. The Work Performance Information is then an input to the process Monitor and Control Project Work (4.4) which converts it into Work Performance Reports.
  4. These reports are used by several other processes, but in particular the reports are an input to Manage Communications (10.2) which creates Project Communications.

A definition of several of these terms:

  • Work Performance Data: “The raw observations and measurements identified during activities being performed to carry out the project work.” PMBOK® Guide
  • Work Performance Information: “The performance data collected from controlling processes, analyzed in comparison with project management plan components, project documents, and other work performance information.” PMBOK® Guide
  • Work Performance Reports: "The physical or electronic representation of work performance information compiled in project documents, intended to generate decisions, actions, or awareness.” PMBOK® Guide

Communication Approaches

Within the project management processes there are many terms associated with different communication tools, techniques and approaches. 

The term used for a general understanding of how communication works is a communication model.

  • Communication Models: “A description, analogy, or schematic used to represent how the communication process will be performed for the project.” PMBOK® Guide

The next set of terms deals with the act of communication itself.  Communication technology is the tool used for transferring information. Communication Method is the procedure used for transferring information.  Information Gathering Techniques is a more limited procedure used for communicating data.

  • Communication Technology: “Specific tools, systems, computer programs, etc., used to transfer information among project stakeholders.” PMBOK® Guide
  • Communication Methods: “A systematic procedure, technique, or process used to transfer information among project stakeholders.” PMBOK® Guide
  • Information: “Organized or structured data, processed for a specific purpose to make it meaningful, valuable, and useful in its specific contexts.” PMBOK® Guide

There are two terms associated with systems for managing and controlling information.  The more general term is Information Management Systems which is any set of facilities and procedures used to collect, store and distribute information.  The more specific term is the Project Management Information System (PMIS). This is a manual or automated information management system that is tailored to meet the needs of a project.

  • Information Management Systems: “Facilities, processes, and procedures used to collect, store, and distribute information between producers and consumers of information in physical or electronic format.” PMBOK® Guide
  • Project Management Information System: “An information system consisting of the tools and techniques used to gather, integrate, and disseminate the outputs of project management processes.” PMBOK® Guide

Definitions are taken from the Glossary of the Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition, Project Management Institute, Inc., 2017, Pages 701, 708, 710, 711, 713, 715, 716, and 726. PMBOK is a registered mark of the Project Management Institute, Inc.

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  • 00:04 Hi this is Ray Sheen.
  • 00:06 Let's review the processes in the project communication management knowledge area.
  • 00:11 The project management body of knowledge,
  • 00:14 the PMBOK Guide defines this area project communication management includes
  • 00:19 the processes that are required to ensure timely and appropriate planning,
  • 00:23 collection, creation, distribution, storage, retrieval, management,
  • 00:28 control, monitoring, and ultimate disposition of project information.
  • 00:33 A project manager often spends a large part of their time on communication,
  • 00:38 both informal and formal, internal and external.
  • 00:42 The larger the team, the more communication effort required.
  • 00:46 The communication can take many different forms based upon the technology,
  • 00:50 team dynamics, and the customer of the organization.
  • 00:53 There are three project communication management processes.
  • 00:57 Plan communications management is a standard planning process that provides
  • 01:01 for policies, procedures and the approach that will be used on the project.
  • 01:06 Manage communication is the executing process in this knowledge area.
  • 01:10 This is where we actually do the communicating, sending the information,
  • 01:14 listening to team members and stakeholders,
  • 01:16 getting the right information to the right people at the right time.
  • 01:20 And monitor communication is a monitoring and
  • 01:23 controlling communication process that finds and corrects any gaps or
  • 01:26 misunderstanding and assures that the stakeholders' needs are being met.
  • 01:31 The next two slides are glossary terms relating to communication.
  • 01:35 These are used throughout the PMBOK Guide.
  • 01:37 Your company definition for some of these terms may be different, so
  • 01:40 I wanna review these.
  • 01:41 I will give you the PMBOK definition and a practical explanation for each.
  • 01:46 Work performance data is the raw observation and measurements
  • 01:49 identified during activities being performed to carry out the project work.
  • 01:54 It's just data.
  • 01:56 He completed this test, this activity cost $2,438.
  • 01:59 Data must be transformed into information to be useful.
  • 02:05 Work performance information is the performance data collected from
  • 02:08 controlling processes, analysis in comparison with project management plan
  • 02:12 components, project documents and other work performance information.
  • 02:17 Notice it's the controlling processes that turn data into information.
  • 02:21 Information means the data now has meaning with respect to the project objective.
  • 02:27 And work performance reports are the physical electronic representation of work
  • 02:31 performance information compiled as project documents
  • 02:35 intended to generate decisions, actions or awareness.
  • 02:38 Reports are what the manage communication process distributes,
  • 02:41 it's an integrated view of the project information.
  • 02:45 There are a number of different communication approaches and
  • 02:48 tools in referenced in the PMBOK Guide, so let's go through these.
  • 02:52 The communication model is a description, analogy, or schematic
  • 02:56 used to represent how the communication process will be performed for the project.
  • 03:01 Think of it as a picture or
  • 03:02 PowerPoint slide that describes how communication will happen on this project.
  • 03:07 Communication technology is the specific tools, systems, computer programs,
  • 03:13 etc, used to transfer information among project stakeholders.
  • 03:17 This is your email system, phone system, instant messaging,
  • 03:21 SharePoint, carrier pigeons or whatever other mechanism you are using.
  • 03:25 Communication methods are a systematic procedure technique or
  • 03:29 process used to transfer information among project stakeholders.
  • 03:33 The last definition was the mechanism.
  • 03:36 This is the procedure for how to use the mechanisms.
  • 03:40 Information is organized or structured data, processed for a specific purpose
  • 03:45 to make it meaningful, valuable, and useful in its specific contexts.
  • 03:50 Information is what is shared in the communication systems.
  • 03:54 The information management systems are facilities, processes, and procedures
  • 03:59 used to collect, store, and distribute information between producers and
  • 04:03 consumers of information in physical or electronic format.
  • 04:07 Think of it as the big database or
  • 04:09 file cabinets that has all of the data information and the reports.
  • 04:14 And the project manage with the information system is an information
  • 04:17 system consisting of tools and techniques used to gather integrate and
  • 04:21 decimate the output of project manage with processes.
  • 04:24 It's used to support all aspects of the project from initiation through closing.
  • 04:28 It can include both management and automated systems.
  • 04:31 This is a subset of the previous definition, and
  • 04:34 in this case, there's an information management system devoted to the project.
  • 04:40 Now let's see how the communication processes interact with each other.
  • 04:43 As with the other knowledge areas,
  • 04:45 we start with the plan communication management.
  • 04:48 This process creates the project communication plan that is incorporated
  • 04:52 into the project management plan.
  • 04:53 And again, we see the project management plan is the input for
  • 04:57 the remaining processes.
  • 04:58 And is even an input back into the plan communication management process.
  • 05:03 The manage communication process creates project communications
  • 05:06 which are included in our category of controlled project documents.
  • 05:10 And both manage communication and monitor communications
  • 05:13 provide updates to project documents and to the project management plan.
  • 05:17 There may only be a few processes in this area, but
  • 05:20 don't think that this is gonna be easy.
  • 05:23 There will likely be many questions on the exam, especially around all the tools and
  • 05:28 techniques associated with communication.

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PMI, PMP, CAPM and PMBOK are registered marks of the Project Management Institute, Inc.

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