Focus on the following

Questions to ask

1

Communication objectives

What are you hoping to achieve with your project communications?

Look at the objectives established for the project.

2

Target audiences (internal and external) and the makeup of each audience

Who do you want to communicate with?

Refer to the roles established for the project. Consider a broad range of stakeholders.

3

Purpose of the communication for each audience

Why are you communicating with them?

Think about what your audience would like to know from their perspective - “What’s in it for me?”

4

Key communication messages and the content of the message

What do you want to say?

The content should address the reason the audience will be interested in the project.

5

Information sources

Where will you find the information you need to collect for your communications?

Some information may be from official sources, and other information will be created as part of the project and stored in the project repository.

6

Frequency of the communication

How often do you want the communication to be delivered?

Weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, at the end of a stage, etc.

7

Format and delivery mechanism for the communication

How does the target audience prefer to receive this information?

Report, phone, website, meeting, formal presentation, etc.

8

The messenger

Who is the responsible communicator?

Who prepares and distributes or presents the communication?

Usually the project manager and project sponsor are the main communicators, but the size of the project may require the assignment of a role of project communicator.  

9

Communication milestones and measurements of success

How will you know if your plan is working?

Establish some simple performance indicators and evaluation measures to determine if the communication plan is effective. Example – use of a Meeting Evaluation form after a meeting.