Anticlue

Communications Planning

Communications Planning determines which stakeholders need what information, when they will need it, how the information will be communicated, and who is responsible for communicating the information. One of the key task is to assure a reliable way to meet the informational needs of the stakeholders which is linked to the enterprise environmental factors and organizational influences.

The inputs to communication planning are:

1. Enterprise environmental factors - External and internal environmental factors influence the project's success. Examples: organizational culture and structure, infrastructure, existing resources, and communications technology.
2. Organizational process assets – Organizational process assets represent the knowledge learned and documented from previous organizational endeavors. Some organizational process assets are formal and informal plans, policies, procedures, and guidelines.
3. Project Scope Statement – The project scope statement describes the project scope including major deliverables, scope objectives, scope assumptions, scope constraints, and a statement of work.
4. Project Management Plan – The project management plan is the bought into, agreed to, realistic, and formal document detailing how the project will be executed, monitored and controlled. Assumptions and constraints may affect communications and should be considered.

When you use the proper inputs for Communications Planning, you will feel confident that you have a solid foundation for your Communications Management Plan. As project manager, you will want to use the proper tools and techniques to develop a communications plan from the inputs you have gathered. The two tools and techniques for communications planning are:

1. Communications requirements analysis – Communications requirements analysis determines the information needs of the stakeholders. By combining the type and format of information needed considering the information’s value to the audience. The goal is to walk the balance between overwhelming with too much granular information to too little high level reviews.
   In order to ascertain the project communications requirements, the project manager reviews:
   • Organization Charts
   • Project organization and stakeholder responsibility relationships
   • Disciplines, departments, and specialties engaged in the project.
   • Logistics of how many individuals are involved with the project at which locations.
   • Internal information needs
   • External information needs
   • Stakeholder information
2. Communications technology – The communication technology describes the methodology utilized to communicate with the stakeholders. This can include sharepoint, video cam meeting or minutes.
   When considering which communications technology to use, please consider the following:
   • The urgency of the information
   • The availability of the technology
   • The expected project staffing
   • The length of the project
   • The project environment

When determining which communication tool and technique to use, it is a good idea to keep in mind the channels of communication. The total number of communication channels is n(n-1)/2, where n is the number of stakeholders. The number of potential communication channels is an indicator of project’s communications complexity.

The output of communications planning is the Communications Management Plan. The communication management plan is comprised of the following information:

• Stakeholder communication requirements
• The format utilized
• The individual responsible for assuring communications
• The information recipients
• The form of communication (email, conference calls)
• The frequency of the communications
• Escalation time frames and management change for escalation
• The change control process for updating the communications plan
• A glossary of terminology and jargon

A Communications Plan clarifies the project's communications requirements and establishes communication strategies.