Development projects are teamwork that must be carried out with smooth communication. Therefore, project communication management is essential for every type of project, large or small. To keep project development management running well, see the complete explanation below.

What is project communication management?

Project communication management refers to the processes that help ensure appropriate communication is delivered by one of the parties and properly received and understood by the team. Communication in project management is also concerned with the exchange of ideas and opinions between professionals working on project-related tasks. Communication in project management ensures that each professional works on the project according to the project management method, so that it meets development goals and expectations. Good communication will really help professionals work more efficiently and can improve the overall quality of their work.

Why is project communication management important?

A development project team consists of professionals with diverse abilities and perspectives. Communication is critical to keeping all team members properly informed and focused on goals. The project manager must spend a fair amount of time communicating with the team in order to ensure the success of the project. Although communication is a project manager's job, other professionals must also commit to developing their communication skills when working on projects. For example, by proactively asking questions to the project manager if there are certain aspects that are not understood, If there are suggestions that are deemed more appropriate and appropriate for project progress, they can also be submitted.

Communication Type

In large-scale development project management, it is usually divided into several teams. Each team may have their own way of communicating. What is certain is that each team leader must get the information clearly from the project manager. The following are several types of communication that can be used in development projects:

1. Meeting It is important to hold regular meetings attended by the project manager and leaders on each team. Then the team leader will hold his own meeting with his team to present the results of the big meeting. Meetings are very useful for conveying project progress and any suggestions, complaints, and so on. At the start of the project, a meeting should be held to confirm the plan. Now meetings are easier to hold because they can be done in person or online.
2. Telephone If you want to get an immediate response from someone or when something is very important, then the telephone is the most essential communication tool. To ensure that the telephone call is effective, it is better to send a short message first to ensure that the person you are calling is available and not in the field.
3. Group chat Group chat can be a very easy way to maintain communication with all team members. Group chat can be used as a platform to educate or assist all team members in forming better collaboration.
4. Presentation Presentations are an effective method at the start of a project to explain the overall plan and strategy. Presentations may also be done in the middle of a project so that all team members know exactly where things are going.
5. Email Email is still a classic tool that can be used in project communication management. Usually, email is used to convey professional information. For example, to inform deadlines, disseminate project plans, and so on.

Project Communication Management Challenges

When a communication strategy fails to fulfil its function, it will affect the quality of the project and make the client dissatisfied. The following are three challenges commonly faced in project development:

• Lack of planning Unfortunately, the communication planning process is still often ignored because it will be the main cause of communication failure in a development team.
• Not transparent When project members don't know about the latest developments, there is a very dangerous communication gap. Not all team members need to know all the details, but make sure the things needed by each team are conveyed transparently and well.
• Failing to improve communication Communication failures at the beginning are still normal, especially when there are new members or they are working on projects that have never been handled before. What is important is how this failure can be handled well. Don't keep failing until the project is halfway done, because the end result will not be good.

4 Important Steps in Project Communication Management

So that the project management methodology runs smoothly, maintain communication in the following 4 ways:

1. Plan communication. Before starting any building project, it is very important to create a communications plan to ensure that any important information is conveyed properly. The process of creating a communication strategy for a development project includes: Find a communications management tool that will serve as the team's knowledge management hub. Use project collaboration tools to share documents and feedback and track project progress. Establish a communication management chain or workflow that clearly outlines. How the information generated at each stage of the project is delivered to where it is needed. Appoint project communications management responsible for delivering messages to every level of the team.
2. Organise communication. Once a communication strategy has been created, the next step is to apply it to convey information, starting from where the information is generated in project management to where the information must be conveyed. This process must be clear so that if there is information that is not conveyed, you can immediately find out where the error is. If you already know the source of the error, you can find a solution to improve the communication chain.
3. Monitor communications Analyse project collaboration strategies occasionally to see what is going according to plan and what is not. Make sure all messages are delivered and received using the tools that have been decided, and most importantly, the messages can be understood well. It would be better if communication errors were discovered in the early stages of development so they could be resolved as soon as possible. That way, there will be no fatal information errors from the middle to the end of the project.
4. Listen to the team. This step is important for project managers and every team leader. Listening skills are needed to find out what developments are like and whether there are problems in each team that need to be addressed immediately.

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