As consultants within the asset management space, we work on projects for our clients that are typically very complex, time consuming, and have a lot of visibility within an organization. Because of these factors, managing projects and the cadence of work requires a specific focus and tact to ensure stakeholders understand accomplishments and challenges, and the materiality of the impact on their objectives. Without proper communication, small issues can snowball into larger problems, swiftly derailing a project and degrading stakeholder buy-in. While communication is a skill that few have mastered, it’s essential for enabling leadership to focus on their main priority—the business.
Strong project communication and reporting are both catalysts to fostering transparency with stakeholders as well as keeping the project on track. To help maximize success, project managers should consider the five tips below for maintaining effective communication throughout the duration of a project.
Be in constant contact with stakeholders
I have never heard a stakeholder say a project manager is talking to me too much! Know what information stakeholders need and make sure they are informed of an issue before they hear it from someone else. This will keep issues at a minimum and ensure a quick resolution.
Hold regular one-on-one meetings
Individual meetings are the perfect forum to discuss project milestones, issues, risks, and make decisions. These sessions will help ensure that stakeholders know what they must decide on while simultaneously receiving feedback on their view of project status. This will keep the project running smoothly and minimize delays.
Find out what keeps stakeholders up at night
If you ask your stakeholders directly what their biggest project concerns are, it will provide them an opportunity to give you an opinion that you can quickly get in front of. Show empathy for what they are worried about and remind them that you are working together. This will enable them to be a voice of reason for both the project manager and project itself.
Produce and distribute status updates
This is a no-brainer. Status updates should be provided at a high level to all team members. This communication is crucial, as it could be the only insight some team members have into the project. Updates should be available to everyone and be formatted so the team is able to quickly read the update and know exactly what is going on. Also make sure issues and risks have enough detail and that someone is clearly assigned to mitigate any outstanding items.
Communicate with all team members
It’s important to spend time with each team member to discuss their role and how their work impacts and contributes to the overall project. Not only does this promote accountability, but it lets everyone know that what they are doing means something to the project. Maintaining an open dialogue with all resources also fosters trust and will help ensure that you can get in front of issues quickly.
Failure to effectively communicate with your project team and stakeholders can create turmoil across a project. When resources are unaware of what is happening behind the scenes, they may begin to jump to conclusions. Back channel discussions, where team members aren’t sure what they are supposed to be doing or when they should deliver, will begin. When this happens, project stakeholders will start to ask questions which divert time and energy away from the completion of deliverables to the resolution of unnecessary concerns. This churn can lead to project delays and can be simply avoided with strong communication and documentation.
By following these tips for an effective project communication plan, team members will be well aware of what is going on at every project stage—empowering them to achieve individual goals while contributing to the success of the overall project. This allows project managers to focus on what they do best: managing the project and focusing on moving it towards a successful completion.
