Importance of Communication Skills in Project Management

The importance of communication skills in a project can't be emphasized enough.

Especially, Project managers spend a lot of time communicating with individuals and groups. It's
been estimated that project managers spend 90% of their time on communication related activities,
from assigning tasks to team members to providing status updates. A project team with good
communication skills ends up amplifying the effectiveness of project tools and greatly increases
the likelihood of meeting or exceeding stakeholder expectations (Project-Management-Skills.com
, n.d.).

Maintaining open, regular and accurate channels of communication with all levels of
project staff and stakeholders is vital to ensuring the smooth flow of instructions and sufficient
warning of risks and changes to enable early assessment and preparation. Clear communication,
lets project staff know what is expected of them; what they have to do, when they have to do it,
and what budget and time constraints and quality specification they are working towards. Also
keeps the Project Board informed of project progress (Buehring, 2009).

The project manager is charged with guiding all aspects of the project, including the
communication plan. The specifics of communication, including the method and frequency, vary
depending on your project's needs. The following, briefly describes the components needed for
effective communication in a project (Frost, n.d.) (Burris, n.d.).

Audience
Plan identifies all audiences that will receive communications also ensures the creation of
proper information and the accurate and timely distribution to the appropriate parties.

Expectations
The communication plan sets the standards for how and when communication takes place.
Standards should be set for how participants communicate, including email, meetings,
phone calls and memos.
For regular communication such as meetings, timing is another consideration. Schedule
weekly project meetings to keep participants updated on progress.
The information needed, like reports, alerts, escalation points etc to be communicated
should be set. It makes sure, right information reaches right people.
Specify Roles and Responsibilities for communication set for different phases of the
project (RACI)

Consistency
A communication plan increases the consistency of how the project is handled.

Productivity
Regular communication allows the employees working on the project to remain productive
also make them feel more comfortable with their duties.
Proper communication accommodates effective collaboration
Outcome
Effective communication enables project manager to lead the team to the desired project
outcome. Clear communication right from top level stake holders to bottom, gives an
understanding of what it expected from the project.

As per (Harrison, n.d.), author considers the real reason 90% of the projects fail due to
communication problems. Ineffective communication has a negative impact on successful project
execution and this deficiency has a magnitude of economic impact.
With disciplined adherence to a system of regular and focused communication, you will avoid the
misunderstandings and delays that so frequently lead to project failure and ensure that all your
project staff and stakeholders are secure in their knowledge of what has to be done, and who is
doing it.

Poor communication can lead to the following trouble areas (TenStep, n.d.).

Differences in expectations in terms of what is to be delivered, when and at what cost.

Things can get out of sync due to lack of common expectations.
People are surprised as to what is going on when changes occur, leaving them frustrated.
Lack of knowledge on project status leading to ineffective decisions and wastage of time
in search of information.
People are impacted by the project at the last-minute leading them to rush at the last
minute
Team members dont know what is expected of them from their own team members,
leading to failure of internal structure.

Top skills that make an active difference in communication as per (Sweeney, 2010)

Active Listening
In first place is the ability to listen to and understand others. The benefits include getting
people to open up, and due to that lots of misunderstandings and conflicts can be resolved.

Building Relationships Based on Trust and Respect

Trust and respect are the cornerstones of personal relationships. They are earned, not a
right, and come from an experience of our honesty, integrity and expertise.
Among the characteristics people used to determine our credibility are truthfulness,
openness, willingness to share ideas and information freely, consistency, reliability,
loyalty, capabilities and competence.

Setting Clear Priorities

The ability to convey the strategy to the team, by setting goals, planning and prioritizing.
We call this the what, who, when, where, why and how of the project. Team members
should understand both the big picture and the lower level technical priorities.
 Enabling Collaboration
In a collaborative environment, team members support and encourage each other rather
than focusing solely on their tasks and responsibilities. They are willing to co-operate and
share information, ideas and assets to help each other. The result can be greater than the
sum of its parts.

Conveying the Organizations Vision

Explaining the bigger picture helps team members understand where the project fits within
the overall aims of your business unit and organization. Senior executives focus on the
triple bottom line - finance, environment, reputation - this is where they expect your project
to make a difference.

References
Buehring, S. (2009, Jan 16). The Importance of Communication in Project Management.
Retrieved from Project Smart: https://www.projectsmart.co.uk/the-importance-of-
communication-in-project-management.php
Burris, T. (n.d.). 5 Steps in a Project Communications Plan in Project Management. Retrieved
from chron: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/5-steps-project-communications-plan-
project-management-18757.html
Frost, S. (n.d.). How Important Are Communication Plans for Project Managers? Retrieved
from Chron: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/important-communication-plans-project-
managers-37520.html
Harrison, K. (n.d.). Poor communication is the reason for most project management failures.
Retrieved from Cutting Edge PR: http://www.cuttingedgepr.com/articles/poor-
communication-reason-for-project-management-failures.asp
Project-Management-Skills.com . (n.d.). The Importance of Communication Skills in Project
Management. Retrieved from Project Management Skills: http://www.project-
management-skills.com/importance-of-communication.html
Sweeney, J. A. (2010, Sep 6). Top Five Communication Skills for Project Managers. Retrieved
from Project Smart: https://www.projectsmart.co.uk/top-five-communication-skills-for-
project-managers.php
TenStep, I. (n.d.). Project Management Tips. Retrieved from Project Kickstart:
https://www.projectkickstart.com/downloads/tips11-poor-project-communication.cfm