Is it better to design communication management plan just once for all the project in the company and documenting it as a SOP or is it better to have a communication plan that is specific to a particular project.
I would think of for a common communication management plan since that results in saving some time, it saves resources and reduces one of thing in so many things that needs to be completed while doing a Project.
While it may be beneficial to have a broad communication management plan defined in an SOP, I think that communication management plans tailored to individual projects are more beneficial. This allows for the Project Manager to lay out exactly how the team members will receive the information that they need and how the details of the project will be communicated to upper management and the rest of the company. If the communication plan is already predefined in an SOP, the the PM is forced to follow the procedure which may result in a lot of unnecessary emails being sent spamming the inboxes of upper management. However with that said, it is crucial that the PM does not create a communication management plan where people are not getting adequate information about the project and any other associated details.
I would say that a company should have a communication management plan and document it as an SOP. It should be a broad plan though and include what every communication plan would have. So with different projects, the team should make sure they follow this SOP and add on anything specific to their project. I think a controlled document like an SOP is necessary because sometimes someone on the team may not have experience with communication management plan and it makes it much easier for everyone (the whole company) to be on the same page.
While an outline of a communication management plan documented as a SOP can be beneficial to keeping the entire company on the same page, I think it is also important to give the project manager leeway. The project manager should know their team best and understand the best ways of communication and frequencies of communication that makes the team thrive. While an outline is great and gives the PM a place to start and prevents communication management plans from being all over the place, taking this outline and tailoring it to the team and project can have many benefits. One part of being a PM is knowing the dynamics of your team and project and what are the best conditions for success. Not allowing flexibility in the communication management plan hinders the PM in doing this.
As ala26 stated, it would be good to have some groundwork that is created as an SOP for the entire company and then allow the project manager to tailor it as needed. For example, some people communicate better in person, some respond through text, and others are strictly email senders. Therefore, in order to create proper documentation and track communication, a SOP is necessary for company documentation but not everyone might be able to follow through on it word-for-word. Therefore, having some leeway would not only be helpful, it would make it a more comfortable transition for each team member, depending on how they prefer to communicate.
It also depends on how the project manager himself/herself likes to lead. Some might prefer in-person meetings each morning while others might be ok with an email chain -- therefore, it all depends on each managing person.
I think that there should be a communication plan documentation that is kind of generic like an SOP, however depending on the structure of the company this may not always work. If the company is one which departments have their own kind of culture, then it may be more expedient to confirm to what ever they suggest in their training. Though I think its good to have a central form of documenting for management communication plans are good I also think that its best used in the appropriate setting.
I agree that there should be a common communication management plan that is included as the SOP. This assists in the effective dissemination of information.The information distribution can be designed in compatibility to the project organization chart ensure easy flow of information. Having a common communication plan will also ensure that everyone in the company follows a designated protocol, reducing chances or error, mismanagement, receiving incorrect information, or a project team member not receiving any information at all. This will help save time, resources and also provide a scope for improvement with every team project.
While having a common communication management plan will save time, I believe it needs to be altered depending on the project. If the plan doesn't help all participants clarify and voice their opinions effectively, delays would occur anyway. This could be due to the group misconstruing what stakeholders expect, the group failing to report their progress, and stakeholders informing the team about changes to the original plan too late in the game. Also, different stakeholders may be more comfortable with varying forms of communication. For example, some may prefer in person meetings over email and phone calls. It also depends on what works with the group members and facilitates the work flow, besides mandatory design review meetings. What future teams can take from previous communication management plans are the lessons learned, in order to strengthen the plan and avoid the pitfalls.
In my opinion having a common communication management plan for the company is a good choice until and unless some authority is given to make a few changes to the common communication plan depending on the needs of the project which may involve communicating with people outside the company involved with the project, contractors etc. Having a common communication plan will save time and the people working on projects will already be knowing how the communication plan works within the company for any given project except for a few changes, which will be made depending on each project. It may be seen that the major policies regarding the communication within a given company would remain the same for all projects and only a few things may be modified or some minor changes may be added.
I agree with jl959 that even though the project team would agree on a certain communication plan, there needs to be proper communication with the stakeholders as is it would be very late if they suggest a few changes when we are already 50% into the project so their involvement also needs to be considered as for each project there would be different stakeholders and the communication plan needs to be altered considering them as well if they do not agree with the one in the plan.
Communication plan is a policy driven approach to provide stakeholders with the information. The plan defines who should be given specific information, when that information should be delivered and what communication channels should be used to deliver information. I think it is better to have common communication management plan than the specific to a project. It will save time, the protocols needed to follow will be same. It will save resources and it will be cost effective. It will be more convenient. There will be more real time interactions which means there is instant feedback which will allow the team members to get the solutions. It fosters a sense of community as it will be more social interaction.
Is it better to design communication management plan just once for all the project in the company and documenting it as a SOP or is it better to have a communication plan that is specific to a particular project.
I would think of for a common communication management plan since that results in saving some time, it saves resources and reduces one of thing in so many things that needs to be completed while doing a Project.
This is interesting. While I do think that there should be a standard foundational plan that everyone should follow, I also feel that it should be a live process that can be changed and modified to fit specific projects. This is why I first referred to the overall plan as a foundation, something to build off of. In line with my current position, I do feel that when you have a culture of effective communication in your workplace, things tend to flow easier. Therefore, having a business wide communication SOP that has room for modification would be best.
It is important that the project manager have primary control of communication between the selected team. The project manager is in charge of all of the oversight of the teams for a project. This manager will know and understand the levels of communication that all teams need in order to be successful. I agree that a general SOP is needed to keep initial order for all communication to all teams in a project. The SOP will keep general order and guidelines for all teams to follow for the project. Constant communication between all teams at all levels will help to maintain order in a project.
A project management communication plan is important to a project because it lays out how crucial information will be communicated to stakeholders and team members throughout a given project and so effective communication is critical to project's success then I believe it better to have a communication plan that is specific to a particular project (althought there will be some mutual aspects of project management communication plan in different projects).
I also believe that it is beneficial to have a general communications management strategy and to have it as a part of the SOP. Yet, it may be important to tailor that plan to meet the needs of individual projects and teams as audiences have varying means for giving and receiving communications. The PM needs to have a grasp of the different audiences, a consideration of how to present the information and which tools to use and also consider the preferences of the team. For example, I led a team where one of the members felt compelled to respond to my messages when I sent them and was frustrated when I sent messages early in the morning. I had to explain that I worked late and early, but there was no need to respond to communications outside of the regular work day.
