23 Jan Your team development plan in the form of a minimum two-page document. Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment
Your team development plan in the form of a minimum two-page document. Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including in-text citations and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
What project documents will you use to report project progress?
How will you present and deliver project work performance reports?
What historical organizational project artifacts will you review and include in your reports?
What project communications management tools will you employ?
How will you report revisions to resource requirements based on project progress?
What ethical guidelines will you include in your project communication policies?
How will you collect and ensure accuracy of project performance information used for reporting?
What, if any, templates will you employ to document, present, and communicate team performance?
Instructions
Part 7: Team Performance Reporting
For the project selected in Unit I, create a simple project team development plan. Your plan should follow the process for managing communications, as referred to in Figures 8.1 and 8.2 in the textbook, as well as in the section beginning with Carrying Out the Plan: Understanding the Executing Process Group (page 98 – 114) in the eBook, Project Management: A Common-Sense Guide to the PMBOK Program, Part Two – Plan and Execution. Your plan should include an introduction and should answer the following questions:
· What project documents will you use to report project progress?
· How will you present and deliver project work performance reports?
· What historical organizational project artifacts will you review and include in your reports?
· What project communications management tools will you employ?
· How will you report revisions to resource requirements based on project progress?
· What ethical guidelines will you include in your project communication policies?
· How will you collect and ensure accuracy of project performance information used for reporting?
· What, if any, templates will you employ to document, present, and communicate team performance?
Compile the project reporting plan that addresses the questions above. Feel free to use tables, graphics, or document template examples to summarize your policy and approach.
Submit your team development plan in the form of a minimum two-page document. Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including in-text citations and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
This formal paper example provided by the CSU Writing Center shows this type of formatting.
Chapter 3 , “ Planning Communications Management ,” discussed the communications management planning process. The key deliverable from the planning process is the communications management plan , which provides guidance on how to plan, execute, monitor, and control the project communications. However, a plan will have no significance and will add no value to the project if it is not executed. This chapter focuses on the execution of the communications management plan.
Purpose
The purpose of the project communications management process is to execute the project communications management plan to communicate the right information, in the right format, in the right amount, with the right target audience, at the right time, at the right frequency, and via the right communication channels.
Proper management of project communications—that is, the proper execution of the communications management plan—is the key to establishing sustainable efficient and effective communications among stakeholders throughout the project life cycle.
Scope
The scope of project communications management includes management of the project activities pertaining to creating, gathering, storing, retrieving, disseminating, and finally destroying the project information.
Timing
Started during the executing stage of the project, the project communications management process is performed throughout the project life cycle for ongoing management of the project communications including assessment of the actual performance of the communications management process.
Mechanism
The following sections explain how to manage project communications.
How to Manage Project Communications
The project communications management process contains the following key steps:
1. Review communications management plan.
2. Process work performance reports.
3. Understand project environment.
4. Review historical organizational project artifacts.
5. Use project communications management tools.
6. Conduct project communications.
7. Update project management plan .
8. Update current project documents.
9. Update historical organizational project artifacts.
Figure 8.1 illustrates the overall flow of the project human resources management process. The arrows on the lines show the direction of the information flow.
Figure 8.1 Project Communications Management Process Flow
Review Communications Management Plan
Discussed in Chapter 3 , the communications management plan provides guidelines on how to manage project communications.
Process Work Performance Reports
Work Performance Reports contain the information on project performance and progress status, which must be communicated to executives and other project stakeholders.
Understand Project Environment
The project environment can have influence on how project communications are managed. This information includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Organizational structure
• Organizational culture
• Project or industry standards
• Government regulations
• Project management information system
Review Historical Organizational Project Artifacts
Historical organizational project artifacts can have influence on how project communications are managed. These factors include, but are not limited to, the following:
• Lessons learned
• Organizational or project policies, procedures, processes, and guidelines for communications management
• Project templates
• Project or industry standards
Use Project Communications Management Tools
There are a variety of tools that a project manager can use to manage project communications. Some key tools are described in the following sections.
The three types of communication methods (interactive, push, and pull) have been discussed in Chapter 3 . These methods are targeted to ensure that right information has been received and clearly understood by the right people.
Discussed in Chapter 3 , the choice of communication technology plays an important role in communications related decision making, and it depends on a number of factors, such as the type of project environment, type of technology available, type of technology affordable, communication needs of the stakeholders, type of information, and so on.
Selection of appropriate communication models is also important for effective execution of communications management process because the less noise (communication barriers) in the communications channels, the more effective are the communications.
Lessons Learned in Communications Management
In the August 2010 issue of PMI Today, the Project Management Institute (PMI) Northern Italy Chapter (NIC) shared the following lessons learned in Communications Management from its experience as chapter host for PMI Global Congress 2010 – EMEA and Leadership Institute Meeting (LIM):
“EMEA Service Centre provided many promotional initiatives using PMI channels together with the most important local newspapers. NIC published a special edition of its newsletter dedicated to the EMEA congress, including comments from members who had attended previous congresses. Together with our colleagues in Brussels, we mentioned PMI chapter websites in order to ensure maximum visibility for the event.”
Information Management Systems
Project performance and progress status information will add little or no value if not managed, distributed, and acted upon effectively in a timely manner. The tools that are used to manage the project information and disseminate it to the target stakeholders are called information management systems. Examples of these systems include but are not limited to:
• Intranet, web portals, project scheduling, and collaboration sites, such as SharePoint and project server
• Database management systems, such as Access and SQL servers
• Electronic document archival and management systems, such as Documentum, iManage, and SharePoint
• Electronic communications management systems, such as e-mails, voice mails, instant messaging, telephony, faxes, twitter, blogs, websites, postal service, courier service, and video conferencing
• Printed or handwritten information, such as letters, memos, project plans, project reports, and desk procedures
Performance reporting entails reporting on how the project is progressing against the planned scope, schedule, budget, and quality baselines. However, this reporting is not “one-size-fits-all”; rather, it needs to be customized according to the target audience. For example, only high-level information in the form of an executive summary, a scorecard, or a dashboard may need to be distributed to the senior management while a detailed report may be necessary for the project task owners and leads. The information contained in the performance reports may include but is not limited to schedule and cost variances, work completed during a specific period, work to be completed during the N-days look-ahead period, and risks and issues status.
Conduct Project Communications
Project communications involve the exchange of project performance and progress information among stakeholders. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, project communications can be formal or informal and written or verbal and they are influenced by various factors like type of audience, urgency, impact, delivery method, and confidentiality pertaining to the information. Also, communication is not considered complete until the information is received as well as understood by the intended recipient. If the information being communicated is full of complicated jargon that the target audience cannot understand, the purpose of communication is defeated. According to Forsberg, et al., authors of Visualizing Project Management, “To communicate precisely, you have to think clearly and use a common vocabulary.”
Engaging in communications with project stakeholders is performing the action of communication. Effective communication is essential for implementing a change program effectively. Thus, communications management and change management can be classified as action management.
The Real Challenge in Communications Is Action Management
S. Redwood et al, in their book Action Management, 1st ed., say that “an action is any project or initiative aimed at improving business performance. A change program is an action. So is reengineering. And so is a merger or acquisition. Understanding what an action is—that’s easy. Knowing how to manage it is what bedevils managers from one end of the business world to the other.”
Update Project/Communications Management Plans
Project communications management plan needs to be updated because when stakeholders change or their communication preferences change, project communications change, which trigger updates to the communications management plan. Also, communications performance is measured by comparing the actual performance against the baseline performance. Any deviations may trigger corrective actions, which require the baselines, known as performance measurement baselines (PMBs) per Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)®, to be updated. Because the project management plan is an overarching plan that contains information on project baselines as well as the communications management plan, it would need to be updated whenever any baselines or individual project plans covered under the project management plan are updated.
Update Current Project Documents
As a result of performing the communications management process, some project documents, such as risk and issue logs, budget, schedule, and so on may need to be updated.
Update Historical Organizational Project Artifacts
Historical Organizational Project Artifacts in this context refer to the outputs of the communications management process which include the information that was distributed to the target audience. This information includes, but is not limited to:
• Notifications to stakeholders on project status and the action items they own
• Lessons learned
• Stakeholder feedback for future performance improvement
• Risk and issue logs
• Project presentation documents
• Project communications records encompassing meeting types, information exchanged, meeting minutes, and so on
Tips for Enhancing the Effectiveness of Project Communications Management
The following key factors should be considered to enhance the effectiveness of project communications management:
• Make sure that the information has not only been received by the receiver but it also has been understood.
• Make sure there are no barriers to interactions and communications among stakeholders other than confidentiality or legal constraints, if any.
• Information exchange media should be chosen according to the situation. For example, it must be carefully decided whether the medium should be informal verbal or formal written.
• Project communications standards usually include a consistent writing style, which must be followed for all written communications.
• Meeting management, facilitation, and presentation techniques must be in compliance with project communications standards.
Summary
The mind map in Figure 8.2 summarizes the project communications management process.
Figure 8.2 Project Communications Management Process Summary
