The Art of Project Business

Comm‘U’n‘I’cation

- Dr. Kirti Rajhans,

Sr. Associate Professor,
NICMAR University
Pune, India.
Email: [email protected]
“The reason why communication fails most of the
times is that each is thinking more about what he
intends to say than about what others are saying,
and we never listen when we are eager to speak.”
“The single biggest problem in communication is
the illusion that it has taken place.”

-George Bernard Shaw

“As long as there is communication, everything
can be solved”
Communication is much more than simply sending and receiving
information.
It is a mechanism to-
✓ Reduce uncertainty,
✓ Build trust,
✓ Demonstrate leadership,
✓ Generate support,
✓ Manage change,
✓ Mitigate conflict, and
✓ Facilitate stakeholder satisfaction—all key elements to a project’s
success.
Why Is Communication So Important in
Projects?
• Communication is, of course, a necessity in projects.

• Good communication skills separate good project managers from the rest of the
pack, and separate successful projects from unsuccessful ones.

• Think about any time you have needed to work with another person to accomplish
something….. What did you do?

• Communication is how people work together to get things done.

Project Communications Management

• Fisherman fish, bakers bake, and project managers communicate.

• Project managers spend most of their time communicating. And for good
reason.

• A successful project depends on good communication.

• And troubles are almost always blamed on bad communication.

• “The project communication process is more than simply
conveying a message. It is also a source of control.

• Communication is the key link between people, ideas, and

information.”
- Harold Kerzner
Rules of Triple C
If communication is done properly,

then cooperation will occur intrinsically;

If cooperation exists, then coordination will be effective;

If coordination is in place, then project success is assured.

Essential Triple C of Project Management

• Communication

• Cooperation

• Coordination
Poor Communication kills many projects!
Poor Communication at work has a big impact!
Elements of Project Communications
Management
• Communications on a project is a challenging, ongoing process for a project
manager and all stakeholders.

• According to a study by Vital Smarts magazine, 70 percent of 10,000 projects in

Fortune 500 firms failed because people did not communicate that something
was wrong, resulting in negative consequences from a cost, schedule, and quality
perspective.

• Still another survey by the Centre for Business Practice identified ten key
management challenges, which included two problems with communications:
limited visibility of activities and no project management information
system(PMIS).
Elements of Project Communications
Management
• BULL conducted a study that found 57 percent of project failures resulted from
“bad” communications among stakeholders.

• Regardless of the field they are in, it is fair to say that project managers face
monumental challenges when instituting good communications on projects and
wanting to become expert communicators themselves.

• The challenges become more acute when dealing with global and geographically
dispersed teams using the latest technology, and with stakeholders who must apply
very specialized skills.

• Poor communications can have a costly impact on projects as they progress

through project life cycles.
PMBOK Chapter 10
An Example of Miscommunication on Projects
Why is Communication Critical for Project Success?

❑ Effective project communication is one of the most important factors contributing to the
success of a project.

❑ As Kerzner says, projects are run by communications. The work is defined by the
communications tool known as the Work Breakdown Structure(WBS).

❑ Project Communications Management is managing various team functions in the entire

lifecycle of a project as all project objectives are achieved and reported through
communication.

❑ Projects are known as communication systems.

 Why is Communication Critical for Project Success?

❑ The project communication process is more than simply conveying a message. It is

also a source of control.

❑ Communication is the key link between people, ideas, and information.

❑ Poor communications can easily produce communications bottlenecks. These

bottlenecks can occur at any time and at any phase.

❑ The larger and more complex the project, the more significant communication is
for the results, because communication is the coordinating social mechanism which
most strongly influences the results.
 Organizations that communicate more
effectively have more successful projects
Source: ©2013 Project Management Institute, Inc. Pulse of the Profession
In-Depth Report: The High Cost of Low Performance: The Essential Role
of Communications, May 2013. PMI.org/Pulse
Project Communication Management
Monitoring &
Controlling Processes
Planning
Processes

Enter phase/ Initiating Closing Exit phase/

Start project Processes Processes End project

Executing
Processes

Process

Knowledge Area
Initiating Planning Executing Monitoring & Control Closing

Distribute Information
Indentify Plan
Communication Communication
Manage Stakeholders - Report Performance
Stakeholder
Expectations
 Specific Nature of CRIP Sector & the Need for Efficient
Communication
❑ The nature of Construction, Real Estate, Infrastructure and Projects (CRIP) sector is
very complex and dynamic. Due to its specific nature, efficient communication management
has become a crucial need of the sector.
CRIP –
❑ Involves large capital investments
❑ Embraces multi disciplines
❑ Engages widely dispersed project participants
❑ Operates on tighter schedules
❑ Requires stringent quality standards
❑ The project scenario is multi-level, multi-faceted and information intensive
❑ Many stakeholders operate in frequently changing sets of relationships which are
contractually driven.
❑ Conflicts between various stakeholders often arise due to lack of coordination.
Specific Nature of CRIP Sector & the Need for Efficient
Communication

❑ A unique scope of work and specification for every project: This demands that
project managers generate a tailored communication strategy for every project.

❑ Constraints of cost and time: Rapid and precise communication strategy is required.

❑ Quantitative and qualitative objectives

❑ The inter-dependence of project participants

❑ Need to respond to sudden changes in workload

❑ The labour intensiveness of construction activity

❑ Jargon, semantics and the potential for misunderstandings

❑ An ingrained male-dominated culture

 Example of Communication Management in CRIP

CLIENT EXTERNAL
DESIGN TEAM ENVIRONMENT

CONTRACTORS

CONSULTANTS

Information Environment where

Communication occurs between all
Stakeholders
Project Manager facilitates,
integrates, & coordinates
communication
MATERIAL SUB-CONTRACTORS
SUPPLIERS
PROJECT STAKEHOLDERS MANAGEMENT
“Effective project team communication spans the entire project lifecycle and
touches all team members.”- Kerzner
❑ After considering the role of communication in projects, we can definitely
say that good communication is not merely one of the ‘requirements’ but is
one of the important ‘inputs’ for efficient project management.

❑ Ignoring project communications management can result in project delays,

cost overruns, conflicts, unnecessary disputes and loss of productivity.
❑The famous futurist of U.S.A., John Naishit had said,
“ Future competition will be managerial competition and the focus of
competition among organizations will be effective communications
among the members of the organization and with external
organizations.”

❑Hence, the project manager’s ‘toolkit’ should essentially have

efficiency in Verbal, Non-verbal and Written project communications
with speed, accuracy, clarity, tact and knack.
• Thank you…..