I've discussed the importance of the project communication plan here before.  As I’ve always said – in my opinion – communication is the #1 responsibility of the project manager.  Without effective and efficient communication on the project, the engagement is likely to experience some degree of failure.  It’s just a fact of life.  And it’s important that you create the time in your project schedule for these types of planning documents so your team and customer see it in a tool like Seavus’ Project Viewer so they understand how important they are and how they fit into the overall project planning process.



An effective communication management plan is purely and simply a critical key to the success of a deployment project, as the project manager needs to maintain a close relationship with all parties during the project. The plan provides all project stakeholders with information regarding how resources are being used to accomplish the project objectives, and it serves as an effective tool with which to document the project owner's expectations. The information can be posted in a shared location which allows users on the project to review important documentation, schedules, and procedures. The following should be included within the project communication plan:

 

 





     
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  • All internal and external stakeholders who are expected to support the project




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  • A communications matrix with roles and responsibilities




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  • Guidelines for all information created and distributed




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  • Description of the project directory and filing system with access privileges




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  • Reporting guidelines and types of reports to be used




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  • Project status meetings and frequency of meetings




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  • Management reviews (design, budget, closure)




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If you are interested, you can find a completed project communication plan for download on my website here.  I created it for a project a few years ago and it has been the template that I’ve continued to use successfully ever since to layout who communicates with who when and how that communication is happening. Setting those expectations and responsibilities in stone at the beginning of the project and getting customer signoff provides both you and the customer with a great reference tool as a roadmap for the rest of the project.