The Importance of Communication

By Karen Sloat
Senior Consultant

Often, a client will ask me what the critical components are in making a project a success. Indeed, as I work with various companies and reflect back on my days as a company person, I find myself asking the same question. Why do some projects succeed while others stumble, never to realize the expected benefits?

A few months back, I wrote about the selection of a skilled project manager as one critical success factor of a winning project. Now I would like to discuss another important component that I always observe when a team excels in executing change—good communication.

I have come to the conclusion that there is no such thing as being too good at communicating. It has proven to be a skill that, no matter how good we think we are at it, there is always room for improvement. Think about all the opportunities for miscommunication or, worse, non-communication, during the life cycle of a project.

Project initiation is the first step. Why are we doing this? What do we hope to accomplish? How does it affect me (the employee)?

The second step is project development. How are the teams progressing? What kind of recommendations are being generated? What other departments might be affected? How does it affect me?

Next, there is approval to move to the implementation stage. What projects have been approved? Do the recommendations impact the customer? What benefits do we expect to get by implementing these changes? How does it affect me?

Finally, there is implementation. When will the changes take affect? Are jobs changing? Is new technology being introduced? What training is required? How does it affect me?

I remember very well my days as a manager of a commercial lines services group for a major multi-line insurer. The company had underwriting/processing offices in 38 states, and we would often receive memos stating that our processes were changing effective such-and-such date and that I, the manager, was to ensure a successful implementation of the change. Being somewhat of a rebel; instead of just following the memo, I first asked the normal series of “who, what, why, when, and how” questions. Why is the change being made? What impact should I expect it to have on my department? Who was involved in the recommending of this change—did anyone talk to anyone in the field? Did anyone consider…?

Of course, I did what was needed to ensure that the change was implemented, but it would have been easier if there had been a series of communications that addressed some of my questions along the way; giving me and my staff the opportunity to provide feedback and participate in the decision-making process.

As a consultant, I advocate that a communication plan be developed at the start of every project. I encourage the project leads to look at their plan not only from a management point of view, but also from that of an employee, and to combine that with what is appropriate to share at any given time during the project.

We have so many communication vehicles available today to make the process smooth and seamless. Once you have outlined a communication plan, go back and ask yourself if you have considered all the possibilities as to where things could break down or where engaging those most affected would simplify and support the final implementation.