Project success depends on effective communication and this is the importance of communication in any project. Improving communication maximizes success and minimises risk. In addition, if a project manager can develop effective communication with its stakeholder, this may mean more projects for him/her and the team
Table of Contents
Basic Requirements of Good Communication
- The sender must plan the content of the message and the method by which it is sent.
- The receiver must be adequately prepared to receive the message.
- The best results are usually obtained by two-way communication but it does take longer.
Aims of Communications
The four aims of communication are:
- To convey information
- To deepen understanding
- To get acceptance and belief
- To provoke action
Barriers to Effective Communication
- Physical interference: Noise, discomfort, interruptions etc
- Mental interference: Disinterest, other thoughts (e.g. worries), preconceived ideas
- Language barriers: Nationality, social group, technical terms or jargon
- Personal barriers: Dislike, mistrust, prejudice
- Organisation structure: Lack of direct contact
- Status and profession: Impersonal contact
- Bad timing: Rumours may be heard first
- Resistance to change: Dislike of something new. Fear of redundancy
The key to Communication
You can communicate with people only in terms of their experience. They can understand new information only if it is related to things with which they are already familiar. Complete communication is a two-way process – there must be listening by the sender as well as the receiver.
Selling your ideas
The ability to persuade others to see and agree with our point of view. Selling is used in any Assignment e.g.
- Selling products or services
- Getting agreement
- Gaining recognition
- Relations with clients
- Negotiating
- Introducing plans of improvement
- Co-operating with colleagues
Use the best approach
- Direct: Stress the advantages of your recommendation and the disadvantages of other options. “We must invest money now, to take advantage of the great opportunity that this proposition offers.”
- Oblique: Best used when people may be slightly cynical or opposed to new ideas or change. “People may say this is not the right time to be spending, “however if we examine this great opportunity we shall see that in the long term…”
- Converse: Puts the “other” argument in such a way that it is bound to be rejected. “This isn’t the time to be spending money. The suggestion is that we would get lasting benefits, but the fact is we can’t gamble with money at the moment.
Give evidence
Give facts instead of opinion. Quote credible sources of authority to support your case. Don’t overdo it. Illustrate your point and use examples.
Seek ideas
Seek ideas, proposing ideas is more likely to provoke difficulties.
Suggest ideas
Suggesting ideas is a more effective way of gaining agreement than proposing ideas. There is a 40% probability that an agreement follows a suggestion
Build on ideas
Building on someone else’s ideas is a powerful way to get their wholehearted support. Despite this, the building of ideas is a fairly rare behaviour. People find it easier to fault ideas than to build them up into something better.
Agree rather than disagree
Agreeing with something someone else has said is a powerful way to encourage then to go on and say more. Eight times out of ten this will be the effect. Disagreeing usually triggers further disagreements.
Seek clarification
This is useful when trying to find out the difficulties the other person has in accepting your idea or even coping with opposition to your ideas. Criticism takes the form of several responses:
- Opposition to your ideas: Remember that the opposition is not personal, but based on your arguments and proposals. Appear to be reasonable, allow the other person to save face.
- Anticipate the Opposition: Find some way to help change a view without diminishing status.
Save face
Find something you can agree with. This makes you seem reasonable and can make the counter-argument more acceptable.
- Agree with part. “Of course, you are absolutely right that …”
- Admit it is a reasonable argument. “What you say is very sensible
- Raise objections as an afterthought. “Yes, that seems true however
- Whatever you agree with has to be sincere and to sound sincere!
Appeal to self-interest
Think of how the person in opposition likes to think of himself and add it to the argument, e.g.:
- Caring person: “… but I am sure that we who care about the welfare of our staff would take the line that …”
- Thrifty: “…but I am certain that as we – believe in getting value for money”
- Intelligent: “We all value common sense over-emotional feelings – therefore you will see”
Such responses, if delivered in a reasonable voice, will make it very difficult for anyone to return to the attack without seeming uncaring, a spendthrift or stupid. If they do that they appear aggressive and will lose credibility.