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What Is a Communications Plan?

A communications plan is a document that guides the external communications efforts of an organization. It helps an NGO strategically focus its communication and outreach efforts around a certain set of goals - usually the mission and objectives of an organization. A communications plan is necessary to help an NGO effectively promote its work in the public and donors eyes.

Communications plans help NGOs accomplish this in a number of ways. First, a plan assists an organization in tailoring its message towards specific audiences, and determining which outreach and marketing materials and mediums are best used to communicate with those groups. A communications plan also coordinates the creation and implementation of those materials. Finally, every good communications plan contains an evaluation rubric - a matrix used to assess what is working and what is not so you are constantly improving your communications efforts.

While a communications plan can and should be written for an entire organization, you can also develop communications plans for new projects, events, or anything else that relies on communicating with external stakeholders and audiences.

A completed communications plan should not simply sit on the shelf. It is a document that should be a resource whenever a staff member wishes to seek guidance on how to communicate about your NGO. It is a strategy that should be regularly reviewed and updated based on organizational priorities, staff capacity, and program development.

Why Does My Organization Need a Communications Plan?

An NGO without a communications plan is an organization engaging with its audience blindly.

Here's an example. Perhaps you are trying to recruit new youth participants to join your program. Without a communications plan, you may not have an informed sense of who these youth participants are, where they access information about new programs, and the language to use with them. Thoughtful brainstorming as part of a communications plan can help better target these desired beneficiaries.

Or say you have been trying desperately to engage with a new donor over email, but have never received a response. A communications plan workshop may show that the person you are trying to reach does not check their email often and prefers introductory letters sent to their office. Perhaps someone within your organization knew this, but it was not yet institutional knowledge. A communications plan taps into the background and networks of your team to create informed choices around who you are speaking with and how.

An NGO-wide communications plan will also mean there is consistency in the way you are communicating about your organization. Rather than the Executive Director and a Project Manager referring to programs in different ways, a communications plan will help sync those messages so you do not confuse your audience.

How Do I Create a Communications Plan With My Team?

Creating a communications plan is best done step-by-step over the course of a half day. Usually brainstorming takes around three or four hours.

It is best to choose a team member to lead a communications plan workshop. This person should ideally be someone who is committed fully to the organization's communications, public relations, or marketing duties.

From there, you can work through the elements of a communications plan listed below. This process should be as interactive as possible. Include flipcharts and post-it notes so everyone has a say in what goes into the plan. This process is best done as a group effort, and all levels of the organization should be represented, including the executive team. It is especially important that those regularly communicating to external groups be present at the workshop.

Once you have filled out the elements listed in this guide, the lead staff member should compile the information and create a multi-page document that can be accessed and referred to by all members of your team.

Considerations Before You Get Started

Before you create your communications plan, there are a few considerations to take into account:

Despite there being a variety of free communications channels on the market, the reality is this: it often takes money to communicate effectively with large audiences. From printing costs to media house stipends to sponsored social media ads, it is essential you have a sense of your communications and marketing budget before dreaming big with your communications efforts.

Capacity: Does your NGO have the staffing ability to create, maintain, and use a communications plan? While a communications strategy is an essential part of any organization no matter its size, you must have a champion on your team to lead this process in the long-run.

Executive will: Does your NGO's executive team believe in the value of a communications plan? Often these are the people communicating to the widest group of people about the organization. It is necessary to ensure they are on board before getting started with any workshop or planning.

What Are the Elements of a Communications Plan?

A communications plan has six key elements. These half dozen steps are closely intertwined, and the information included in one is used to determine the information in the next.

Identify Your Organizational Objectives and Communication Goals

Your objectives are the big picture, pie-in-the-sky ambitions you have for your organization and the results of effective communication efforts. Ideally your communications objectives align with the objectives of the organization as a whole - values usually listed in an NGO's mission statement.

Your goals, on the other hand, are the tangible steps that help you achieve those ambitious objectives. Your communications goals should be SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and time bound.

There is a metaphor you can use to differentiate between your NGO's communications objectives and the communication goals. You can liken an objective to a big picture action such as running a marathon. Your goals are then nested within that objective. In this case, your goals would be the smaller steps it takes to reach that greater objective. So if your objective is to run a marathon, the goals leading up to that could be "to train five times a week, to eat healthier, and to do strength workouts in the gym."

Likewise, if your objective is "we want to become the forefront agri-business NGO in Malawi," your communications goals could be "to raise the profile of your NGO with the local agricultural college, to create flyers for an upcoming cattle and poultry fair, and to have one or two key government officials briefed on the work of your organization." Each of these three steps can help attain the larger objective.

Here is a sample template you can use to list your objectives and the corresponding goals.

What are your organizational assets?

Organizational assets are what make your NGO special. These are unique, one-line aspects of programming that will appeal to your audience. Use a bullet list to think of as many assets as you can. You can always add to this list later.

What are your organizational values?

Organizational values are the central beliefs that should drive the design, facilitation, and scaling of your NGO. All communications and organization decisions should take these core values into consideration. Make a bullet list of a few short statements.

Create a SWOT chart

The acronym "SWOT" stands for four headings: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. These items are important to consider in your plan as they may impact an NGO's communications efforts. Strengths and weaknesses are factors internal to your NGO and team, while opportunities and threats are impacted by external forces and parties.

Here is a template to inspire your SWOT chart:

Determining the bullet points that go under each of the SWOT headings is just a start. The next step is to determine how to minimize the weaknesses and threats and best take advantage of the strengths and opportunities.

For the first, come up with solutions to move past each of the weaknesses and threats you identified. For example, if a weakness is identified as "we don't have enough publicity in the regions where we work," a solution could be to "work to expand our networks of media contacts to raise our NGO's profile in the community.

For the second, list ways you can take advantage of the strengths and opportunities. For example, if one of your opportunities is that you have an eager and talented photographer on your team, an advantage is that you could use their talent to create multimedia material to promote your NGO.

This is the part of the communications plan where you determine with whom your organization wishes to communicate. Whether it's youth, government officials, potential donors, or partner organizations, this is the chance to brainstorm what you know about each of these groups.

The idea is this: if you understand who your audience groups are and what motivates them, you are better able to tailor your message to achieve the goals and objectives listed in part one of your communications plan.

As part of determining your audience groups, you will want to list the broad assumptions that can be made about each of those target groups. That can include:

Age: What is the average age of a person in this audience group? For example, if you are communicating with youth, your answer will likely be "18 to 29-years-old." If the audience group is donors, perhaps the average age is someone in their 40's or 50's. The age of your audience will affect the message that will have the most impact and the materials they are most likely to use.
For example: Millennials do not communicate using the same language as elders. Even if both groups are speaking Amharic in Ethiopia, the words they choose to describe their thoughts will likely be dramatically different. By determining the average age of your audience, you can determine which tone to use. There are very specific cultural references linked to different age groups. You best know the age of your audience before using those references in communications. Age can also help determine whether you should be using a more formal or conversational tone with a group.

Language: What language does this audience group speak? This is especially important in countries where there are several official languages and dialects.
For example: Perhaps you're a Nepalese speaking organization, but your donors speak primarily English. By identifying that English is the language used to communicate by that audience group, you can make sure the communications tools and materials you develop are in that language.

Access to technology: What technology does an audience group realistically have access to? Is it a simple mobile phone? A smart phone? A personal computer or a work computer? Identifying the assumptions about each audience group's level of technology access and digital literacy will help your NGO narrow in on which communications materials may best reach that audience.
For example: Say you are trying to communicate with beneficiaries living in a rural village. It does not make sense to communicate through Facebook, Twitter, and email newsletters if those people only have access to mobile phones.

Location: Where does your audience live and where in the community do they go to access programming and information?
For example: If the beneficiaries you are trying to reach are primarily university students, you will want to promote the program on campus and in community and school meeting spots that are important to them.

Education level: How much formal schooling has the average person within your audience group completed? What is their literacy level, including their ability to read and write?
For example: Let's say your NGO is starting a project targeting urban youth who have only completed primary school. These beneficiaries may not have the highest literacy level, and may only be able to read the most basic of text. In this case, you may wish to use very simple language, or perhaps instead rely on illustrations or word of mouth to inform them about your project. If writing is an issue, than you know that registration should be done in person rather than through a registration form.

Attitudes and beliefs: This assumption is more abstract and difficult to identify. Attitudes and beliefs are factors that could affect the way you communicate with any one group. This can be especially pertinent in countries and contexts where there are long-standing cultural norms around concepts such as gender.
For example: Imagine you are an organization trying to get government support for a women's business program your NGO operates. It is important to recognize whether the government officials you may be communicating with have preconceived stereotypes about women and their roles. Do they think women do not have the skills and experience to start businesses? Do they think women are lazy? Identifying these assumptions will help your organization highlight misconceptions your communications may have to work to overcome.

At a minimum, consider the assumptions listed above. Add any other information you think may help your NGO communicate with a specific group.

Here is a sample template you can use to list information about each audience group. Copy and paste this chart for every one of your organization's intended audience segments.

Your message is a call to action. Now that you have identified each of your audience groups, what do you want them to do?

Messages are most effective when they include no more than three main points. Here are three components that should guide the creation of your message:

Needs statement: What need is your NGO, program, or project addressing? Why is it important?

Program strategy: How is your NGO, program, or project filling that need?

Call to action: Now that you've identified the need and how your organization is the solution, ask your audience to do something. Do you want them to donate funds? Sign up for your program? Come to an event? Be clear on your call to action and state it explicitly in your message.

You should come up with a message for each of the audience groups identified in step two. Remember to take into consideration the assumptions you made about each of those groups. Develop a four to five line paragraph of messaging and let it serve as the inspiration and elevator pitch for future communication.

Identify credible messengers

Credible messengers are people who serve as ambassadors for your organization, promoting its mission, programs, and projects to a wider audience. It is important to find these people once your organization has defined its different messages.

Credible messengers do not always need to be people external to an organization. For example, a Country Manager or Project Lead can - and hopefully will - serve as an effective ambassador for your organization. Credible messengers external to your organization can be anyone from a community leader to an official at a partner organization to a particularly engaged beneficiary. Anyone you think will be able to ignite interest and excitement around your organization.

Here are some elements that make for a successful credible messenger:

He/she is engaged and enthusiastic about your organization and its mission;

He/she is well connected within the audience group you are trying to reach;

He/she has been briefed about the organization and its programs so they can speak accurately to others;

He/she has a contact to direct people towards should they wish to find out more information.

Once you have identified your credible messengers, be sure they are constantly kept informed about changes or developments within the organization. Ensure they know their role is appreciated.

Develop your boilerplate text

A boilerplate text is a single paragraph that describes your organization. Boilerplate paragraphs are often found at the end of press releases, partner letters, and other documents that are released to the public.

Here are some suggested elements to include in your NGO's boilerplate text:

A one or two sentence description of the main mission of your NGO;

Your NGO's goal: what impact are you hoping to make through your work;

Where your NGO is based and how long the project is for (if applicable);

Whether there are any partner organizations involved;

When the organization was established.

If your organization already has a boilerplate paragraph, consider reviewing and updating it as you see fit based on what has been identified in your new communications plan.

Identify and Create Your Materials

Now that you have messages for each of your audience groups, it is time to figure out how to communicate them.

Go through your audience groups one by one. Make a bulleted list of every material and medium you think you may need.

Materials are items such as brochures, briefing notes, flyers, press releases, and other documents you may need to communicate.

Mediums are the technology and non-technology tools you are using to share those materials. Examples of technology mediums are social media, email, and SMS bursts. Non-technology mediums would involve newspapers, newsletters, and community center bulletin boards.

Here is a sample template you can use to expand on each communications tool or material. Copy and paste this chart for every one of the materials and mediums you listed.

Implementation of Your Communications Plan

Your entire communications plan is in aid of implementation. This step involves combining everything you've learned about your audience, the message that is most effective in communicating with them, and the materials you've developed. Now it's time to put those tools into practice.

A good way to manage the implementation of your communications plan is to create a content calendar. A content calendar is a document (or physical calendar) that tracks each upcoming communication need, when it's needed, and who will be overseeing each task.

Here is a sample content calendar template. Repeat the following chart to match each material or upcoming communications need.

In addition to the chart listed above, a number of online tools can be used to create your content calendar. Google Calendar allows you to create a calendar that can be shared among your team. Trello is a free project management platform that allows you to create task boards where you can list different communications materials, add a deadline date, and assign them to another team member's board for completion.

This is one part of the communications plan workshop that is not completed at the same time as the other elements. A major evaluation and overhaul of your communications plan should be conducted annually. Otherwise, minor updates should be made as the NGO changes or a new program is launched.

Here are a few questions you can ask to determine whether your communications and communications plan have been impactful:

Were your communications activities adequately planned?

Did the recipients of the messages understand them? Did they follow your call to action?

Were all staff involved in the planning and delivery of your communications?

How could the communications strategy have been more effective?

Were the desired organizational objectives reached?

Were you on track with the timeline and budget for materials?

Sit down as a team and critically discuss these questions and others. Adapt your communications plan based on what is determined to be going well and what could be improved.

What Comes Next?

Run your workshop! As mentioned earlier, that is just the start in the communications strategy development. Once you have brainstormed as a team, one or two people should review that information and extrapolate the key points into a comprehensive communications plan using the six elements mentioned earlier in this guide.

Once the first draft is complete, the communications plan should be reviewed by the team and stored in a shared computer drive or location where all members of the team can refer at any point.

Remember that a successful communications plan impacts all aspects of your organization, from outreach to program operations to fundraising. Now that you know the components of a communications plan and how to tailor those elements to your NGO, we wish you the best of luck in moving forward in a more coordinated and effective way.

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A Free Guide on 'How to Create a Communications Plan for Your NGO'

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What Is a Communications Plan? A communications plan is a document that guides the external communications efforts of an organization. It helps an NGO strategically focus its communication and outreach efforts around a certain set of goals â€" usually the mission and objectives of an organization.

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KnowHow Non-Profit Communication Strategy

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Developing a communications strategy - Knowhow Nonprofit

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Step-by-step guide to producing a comms strategy for your organisation. Includes exercises and downloads.

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A Template for
Organizational Change

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COMMUNICATIONS MANAGEMENT PLAN TEMPLATE

Introduction

The purpose of the Communications Management Plan is to define the communication requirements for the project and how information will be distributed. The Communications Management Plan defines the following:

What information will be communicated-to include the level of detail and format

How the information will be communicated-in meetings, email, telephone, web portal, etc.

When information will be distributed-the frequency of project communications both formal and informal

Who is responsible for communicating project information

Communication requirements for all project stakeholders

What resources the project allocates for communication

How any sensitive or confidential information is communicated and who must authorize this

How changes in communication or the communication process are managed

The flow of project communications

Any constraints, internal or external, which affect project communications

Any standard templates, formats, or documents the project must use for communicating

An escalation process for resolving any communication-based conflicts or issues

This Communications Management Plan sets the communications framework for this project. It will serve as a guide for communications throughout the life of the project and will be updated as communication needs change. This plan identifies and defines the roles of persons involved in this project. It also includes a communications matrix which maps the communication requirements of this project. An in-depth guide for conducting meetings details both the communications rules and how the meetings will be conducted, ensuring successful meetings. A project team directory is included to provide contact information for all stakeholders directly involved in the project.

Communications Management Approach

Approximately 80% of a Project Manager's time is spent communicating. Think about it - as a Project Manager you are spending most of your time measuring and reporting on the performance of the project, composing and reading emails, conducting meetings, writing the project plan, meeting with team members, overseeing work being performed, meeting with clients over lunch and many more activities related to your projects.

You should give considerable thought to how you want to manage communications on this project. By having a solid communications management approach you'll find that many project management problems can be avoided. In this section give an overview of your communications management approach.

The Project Manager will take a proactive role in ensuring effective communications on this project. The communications requirements are documented in the Communications Matrix presented in this document. The Communications Matrix will be used as the guide for what information to communicate, who is to do the communicating, when to communicate it and to whom to communicate.

As with most project plans, updates or changes may be required as the project progresses or changes are approved. Changes or updates may be required due to changes in personnel, scope, budget, or other reasons. Additionally, updates may be required as the project matures and additional requirements are needed. The project manager is responsible for managing all proposed and approved changes to the communications management plan. Once the change is approved, the project manager will update the plan and supporting documentation and will distribute the updates to the project team and all stakeholders. This methodology is consistent with the project's Change Management Plan and ensures that all project stakeholders remain aware and informed of any changes to communications management.

Communications Management Constraints

All projects are subject to limitations and constraints as they must be within scope and adhere to budget, scheduling, and resource requirements. Project planning and documentation are no exception to this rule. There may also be legislative, regulatory, technology, or organizational policy requirements which must be followed as part of communications management. These constraints must be clearly understood and communicated to all stakeholders. While communications management is arguably one of the most important aspects of project management, it must be done in an effective manner and within the constraints of the allocated budget, time, and resources.

All project communication activities will occur within the project's approved budget, schedule, and resource allocations. The project manager is responsible for ensuring that communication activities are performed by the project team and without external resources which will result in exceeding the authorized budget. Communication activities will occur in accordance with the frequencies detailed in the Communication Matrix in order to ensure the project adheres to schedule constraints. Any deviation of these timelines may result in excessive costs or schedule delays and must be approved by the project sponsor.

ABC Corp. organizational policy states that where applicable, standardized formats and templates must be used for all formal project communications. The details of these policy requirements are provided in the section titled "Standardization of Communication" in this document.

ABC Corp. organizational policy also states that only a Vice President or higher level employee may authorize the distribution of confidential information. The project manager is responsible for ensuring that approval is requested and obtained prior to the distribution of any confidential information regarding this project.

Stakeholder Communication Requirements

Most projects consist of a broad range of stakeholders all of whom may have differing interests and influence on the project. As such, it is important for project teams to determine the communication requirements of these stakeholders in order to more effectively communicate project information. There are a number of methods for determining stakeholder communication requirements; however, it is imperative that they are completely understood in order to effectively manage their interest, expectations, and influence and ensure a successful project.

As part of identifying all project stakeholders, the project manager will communicate with each stakeholder in order to determine their preferred frequency and method of communication. This feedback will be maintained by the project manager in the project's Stakeholder Register. Standard project communications will occur in accordance with the Communication Matrix; however, depending on the identified stakeholder communication requirements, individual communication is acceptable and within the constraints outlined for this project.

In addition to identifying communication preferences, stakeholder communication requirements must identify the project's communication channels and ensure that stakeholders have access to these channels. If project information is communicated via secure means or through internal company resources, all stakeholders, internal and external, must have the necessary access to receive project communications.

Once all stakeholders have been identified and communication requirements are established, the project team will maintain this information in the project's Stakeholder Register and use this, along with the project communication matrix as the basis for all communications.

Roles

Project Sponsor
The project sponsor is the champion of the project and has authorized the project by signing the project charter. This person is responsible for the funding of the project and is ultimately responsible for its success. Since the Project Sponsor is at the executive level communications should be presented in summary format unless the Project Sponsor requests more detailed communications.

Program Manager
The Program Manager oversees the project at the portfolio level and owns most of the resources assigned to the project. The Program Manager is responsible for overall program costs and profitability as such they require more detailed communications than the Project Sponsor.

Key Stakeholders
Normally Stakeholders includes all individuals and organizations who are impacted by the project. For this project we are defining a subset of the stakeholders as Key Stakeholders. These are the stakeholders with whom we need to communicate with and are not included in the other roles defined in this section. The Key Stakeholders includes executive management with an interest in the project and key users identified for participation in the project.

Change Control Board
The Change Control Board is a designated group which is reviews technical specifications and authorizes changes within the organizations infrastructure. Technical design documents, user impact analysis and implementation strategies are typical of the types of communication this group requires.
Customer
You should identify the customer if the project is the result of a solicitation. In such a case, the customer will be involved in reviewing prototypes, approval of designs and implementation stages and acceptance of the final project the project generates.

The customer for this project is . As the customer who will be accepting the final deliverable of this project they will be informed of the project status including potential impacts to the schedule for the final deliverable or the product itself.

Project Manager
The Project Manager has overall responsibility for the execution of the project. The Project Manager manages day to day resources, provides project guidance and monitors and reports on the projects metrics as defined in the Project Management Plan. As the person responsible for the execution of the project, the Project Manager is the primary communicator for the project distributing information according to this Communications Management Plan.

Project Team
The Project Team is comprised of all persons who have a role performing work on the project. The project team needs to have a clear understanding of the work to be completed and the framework in which the project is to be executed. Since the Project Team is responsible for completing the work for the project they played a key role in creating the Project Plan including defining its schedule and work packages. The Project Team requires a detailed level of communications which is achieved through day to day interactions with the Project Manager and other team members along with weekly team meetings.

Steering Committee
The Steering Committee includes management representing the departments which make up the organization. The Steering Committee provides strategic oversight for changes which impact the overall organization. The purpose of the Steering Committee is to ensure that changes within the organization are effected in such a way that it benefits the organization as a whole. The Steering Committee requires communication on matters which will change the scope of the project and its deliverables.

Technical Lead
The Technical Lead is a person on the Project Team who is designated to be responsible for ensuring that all technical aspects of the project are addressed and that the project is implemented in a technically sound manner. The Technical Lead is responsible for all technical designs, overseeing the implementation of the designs and developing as-build documentation. The Technical Lead requires close communications with the Project Manager and the Project Team.

Project Team Directory

The following table presents contact information for all persons identified in this communications management plan. The email addresses and phone numbers in this table will be used to communicate with these people.

Project Stakeholders

See Stakeholder Register

See Stakeholder Register

See Stakeholder Register

See Stakeholder Register

See Stakeholder Register

Project Team

Technical Lead

Communication Methods and Technologies

Many times, the methods and technologies used to communicate are just as important of a consideration as the information being communicated. Imagine a large project with many stakeholders who all have different technological capabilities. Some may have access to a share drive while others do not. Some may have access to video teleconferencing and others only have telephone and email capabilities. In order to be effective, project information must be communicated to everyone involved by some method using available technology. Determining communication methods and what technologies are available should be part of determining stakeholder communication requirements.

The project team will determine, in accordance with ABC Corp. organizational policy, the communication methods and technologies based on several factors to include: stakeholder communication requirements, available technologies (internal and external), and organizational policies and standards.

ABC Corp. maintains a SharePoint platform within the PMO which all projects use to provide updates, archive various reports, and conduct project communications. This platform enables senior management, as well as stakeholders with compatible technology, to access project data and communications at any point in time. SharePoint also provides the ability for stakeholders and project team members to collaborate on project work and communication.

For stakeholders who do not have the ability to access SharePoint, a web site will also be established for the project. Access to the website will be controlled with a username and password. Any stakeholders identified who are not able to access SharePoint will be issued a unique username and password in order to access the web site. The project manager is responsible for ensuring all project communications and documentation are copied to the web site and that the content mirrors what is contained on the SharePoint platform.

ABC Corp. maintains software licenses for MS Project software. All project teams are responsible for developing, maintaining, and communicating schedules using this software. PERT Charts are the preferred format for communicating schedules to stakeholders. The project schedule will be maintained on both the SharePoint platform and the project website.

All project communication and documentation, in addition to being maintained on the SharePoint platform and project website, will be archived on the internal ABC Corp. shared drive which resides in the PMO program directory. Organizational naming conventions for files and folder will be applied to all archived work.

Communications Matrix

The following table identifies the communications requirements for this project.

Communication Type

Objective of Communication

Medium

Frequency

Audience

Owner

Deliverable

Format

Kickoff Meeting

Introduce the project team and the project. Review project objectives and management approach.

- Face to Face

Once

- Project Sponsor
- Project Team
- Stakeholders

Project Manager

- Agenda
- Meeting Minutes

- Soft copy archived on SharePoint site and project website.

Project Team Meetings

Review status of the project with the team.

- Face to Face
- Conference Call

Weekly

- Project Team

Project Manager

- Agenda
- Meeting Minutes
- Project Schedule

- Soft copy archived on SharePoint site and project website.

Technical Design Meetings

Discuss and develop technical design solutions for the project.

- Face to Face

As Needed

- Project Technical Staff

Technical Lead

- Agenda
- Meeting Minutes

- Soft copy archived on SharePoint site and project website.

Monthly Project Status Meetings

Report on the status of the project to management.

- Face to Face
- Conference Call

Monthly

- PMO

Project Manager

- Slide Updates - Project Schedule

- Soft copy archived on SharePoint site and project website.

Project Status Reports

Report the status of the project including activities, progress, costs and issues.

- Email

Monthly

- Project Sponsor
- Project Team
- Stakeholders
- PMO

Project Manager

- Project Status Report
- Project Schedule

- Soft copy archived on SharePoint site and project website.

Communication Flowchart

Flowcharts provide a visual representation of a process or processes which often allow a better understanding of how the process is intended to work. Project communications may be extremely complex depending on the size and scope of the project and the number of stakeholders. A flowchart provides all stakeholders with a better understanding of the steps involved with the distribution of all project communications.

The communication flowchart below was created to aid in project communication. This flowchart provides a framework for the project team to follow for this project. However, there may be occasions or situations which fall outside of the communication flowchart where additional clarification is necessary. In these situations the Project Manager is responsible for discussing the communication with the Project Sponsor and making a determination on how to proceed.

Guidelines for Meetings

Meeting Agenda
Meeting Agenda will be distributed 5 business days in advance of the meeting. The Agenda should identify the presenter for each topic along with a time limit for that topic. The first item in the agenda should be a review of action items from the previous meeting.

Meeting Minutes
Meeting minutes will be distributed within 2 business days following the meeting. Meeting minutes will include the status of all items from the agenda along with new action items and the Parking Lot list.

Action Items
Action Items are recorded in both the meeting agenda and minutes. Action items will include both the action item along with the owner of the action item. Meetings will start with a review of the status of all action items from previous meetings and end with a review of all new action items resulting from the meeting. The review of the new action items will include identifying the owner for each action item.

Meeting Chair Person
The Chair Person is responsible for distributing the meeting agenda, facilitating the meeting and distributing the meeting minutes. The Chair Person will ensure that the meeting starts and ends on time and that all presenters adhere to their allocated time frames.

Note Taker
The Note Taker is responsible for documenting the status of all meeting items, maintaining a Parking Lot item list and taking notes of anything else of importance during the meeting. The Note Taker will give a copy of their notes to the Chair Person at the end of the meeting as the Chair Person will use the notes to create the Meeting Minutes.

Time Keeper
The Time Keeper is responsible for helping the facilitator adhere to the time limits set in the meeting agenda. The Time Keeper will let the presenter know when they are approaching the end of their allocated time. Typically a quick hand signal to the presenter indicating how many minutes remain for the topic is sufficient.

Parking Lot
The Parking Lot is a tool used by the facilitator to record and defer items which aren't on the meeting agenda; however, merit further discussion at a later time or through another forum.

A parking lot record should identify an owner for the item as that person will be responsible for ensuring follow-up. The Parking Lot list is to be included in the meeting minutes.

Communication Standards

Standardization is a proven way to simplify the complexities of project management communications. Many organizations develop and use standard templates or formats for the various communication tools used throughout projects. Standard templates and formats may be applied to certain types of project meetings or specific types of communication (i.e. emails, status reports, etc.). By using standardization, organizations can help ensure that its project teams and stakeholders have a thorough understanding of what is expected and achieve consistent and effective communications.

In addition to standard templates and/or formats, organizations may standardize file naming or sharing conventions. An organization may use SharePoint or some other type of Web Portal/Network tool (blogs, message boards, etc.) as a standard platform from which to share information and communicate. Additionally, an organization may have standard file naming conventions for their stored data on their internal share drives. Many of these tools and new technologies are used in today's projects with team members and stakeholders often spread over wide geographic areas. Standardization provides a level of simplicity to an organization's communication platforms and improves effectiveness and efficiency.

For this project, ABC Corp. will utilize standard organizational formats and templates for all formal project communications. Formal project communications are detailed in the project's communication matrix and include:

Kickoff Meeting - project team will utilize ABC Corp. standard templates for meeting agenda and meeting minutes. Additionally, any slides presented will use the ABC Corp. standard slideshow template.

Project Team Meetings - project team will utilize ABC Corp. standard templates for meeting agenda and meeting minutes. Additionally, any slides presented will use the ABC Corp. standard slideshow template.

Technical Design Meetings - project team will utilize ABC Corp. standard templates for meeting agenda and meeting minutes. Additionally, any slides presented will use the ABC Corp. standard slideshow template.

Monthly Project Status Meetings - project team will utilize ABC Corp. standard templates for meeting agenda and meeting minutes. Additionally, any slides presented will use the ABC Corp. standard slideshow template.

Project Status Reports - project team will utilize ABC Corp. standard templates for meeting agenda and meeting minutes. Additionally the standard project status report document, available on the share drive, will be used to provide project status.

Informal project communications should be professional and effective but there is no standard template or format that must be used.

Communication Escalation Process

As issues or complications arise with regards to project communications it may become necessary to escalate the issue if a resolution cannot be achieved within the project team. Project stakeholders may have many different conflicting interests in a given project. While escalations are a normal part of project management, there must be a documented process that defines how those escalations will take place.

Efficient and timely communication is the key to successful project completion. As such, it is imperative that any disputes, conflicts, or discrepancies regarding project communications are resolved in a way that is conducive to maintaining the project schedule, ensuring the correct communications are distributed, and preventing any ongoing difficulties. In order to ensure projects stay on schedule and issues are resolved, ABC Corp. will use its standard escalation model to provide a framework for escalating communication issues. The table below defines the priority levels, decision authorities, and timeframes for resolution.

Priority

Definition

Decision Authority

Timeframe for Resolution

Priority 1

Major impact to project or business operations. If not resolved quickly there will be a significant adverse impact to revenue and/or schedule.

Vice President or higher

Within 4 hours

Priority 2

Medium impact to project or business operations which may result in some adverse impact to revenue and/or schedule.

Project Sponsor

Within one business day

Priority 3

Slight impact which may cause some minor scheduling difficulties with the project but no impact to business operations or revenue.

Project Manager

Within two business days

Priority 4

Insignificant impact to project but there may be a better solution.

Project Manager

Work continues and any recommendations are submitted via the project change control process

** NOTE: Any communication including sensitive and/or confidential information will require escalation to VP level or higher for approval prior to external distribution.
Glossary of Communication Terminology

Communication

The effective sending and receiving of information. Ideally, the information received should match the information sent. It is the responsibility of the sender to ensure this takes place.

Stakeholder

Individuals or groups involved in the project or whose interests may be affected by the project's execution or outcome.

Communications Management Plan

Portion of the overall Project Management Plan which details how project communications will be conducted, who will participate in communications, frequency of communications, and methods of communications.

Escalation

The process which details how conflicts and issues will be passed up the management chain for resolution as well as the timeframe to achieve resolution.

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free project communications management plan template

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The purpose of the Communications Management Plan is to define the communication requirements for the project and how information will be distributed. The Communications Management Plan defines the following: What information will be communicated-to include the level of detail and format How the information will be communicated-in meetings, email, telephone, web portal, etc.