University of Maryland, College Park

Pearl Diving Assignment 3

Priyanka Erripothu

Communication for Project Managers: ENCE614

Dr. Shana Webster-Trotman

April 23, 2022

Introduction

My long-term career goal is to be a successful project manager. Project Managers spend

90% of their time communicating (Leybourne, Kanabar, & Warburton, 2010). These days
all the students are smart and energetic. Everyone has the hard skills required for
employment. Are these skills all they need? As we go ahead in our careers it is important
to focus on our soft skills. Communication for Project Managers emphasizes a very major
soft skill that 90% of the PM consider as a key skill to be successful, communication.
Knowledge of the self has been considered at the very core of human behavior (Whetten,
2020). Through ENCE614 I got an opportunity to learn about myself and my peers. I did
glean many surprising facts about myself. It is very important to know one’s personality
type and what shapes one's personality. The required readings, coursework, and
interactive class exercises act as a helping hand for the students to understand their
speaking styles and come up with ways to improve their communication skills. As a part
of group activities, we students learned about collaboration, time management, team, and
teamwork. Students in Communication for Project Managers must complete required
readings, participate in class activities and, ultimately, employ the skills they learn in
class in the real world. Through this essay, I will highlight my key takeaways from the
readings and class exercises. I will also emphasize their impact on my personal and
professional growth to date and the practices implemented by me from the valuable
learnings of this course, and how these skills and techniques have prepared me to become
a good Project Manager and a Good Communicator.

A quote from those discussed in class. Quote’s significance to ENCE614 and my role
as an effective Project Manager/ Leader

As stated by Peter F. Drucker, the most important thing in communication is hearing

what isn’t said, Nonverbal communication is the most powerful form of communication.
Peter F. Drucker also states, “The best communicators are sensitive to the power of
emotions and thoughts communicated nonverbally.
As a part of week 3 of ENCE614, I learned about this quote. Effective communication is
the whole and the sole fact of a successful project. The main objective of the ENCE614
course is to graduates must be able to manage the important resource of any company,
People in a project to contribute to project success and human well-being. It is through
this course I got to know the importance of nonverbal communication and how one can
communicate in an efficient way using one's body language. Only 7% of the audience's
impression of a speaker is based on verbal communication. 38% is based on the tone of
delivery and 55% is based on body language. The quote played an important role for the
students to understand the power of emotions and thoughts through nonverbal
communication. Prof. Trotman always understood the intentions, thoughts, and emotions
of the students without even being completely conveyed. During the 3 rd week of class,
when a few of the students were expressing their thoughts on this quote, Prof. Trotman
could understand what they were going through were sharing their words. We are all
always communicating even without moving our lips. This quote made us learn the key
to the magic of effective communication. Having worked as an engineer for 3 years, I
realized that there is a huge difference between the responsibilities and skills needed by
an engineer and a manager. Keeping in my mind my “Big Why” and “Where I stand in
my career”, it is very important for me to learn about nonverbal communication,
obstacles in communicating to the group, and key attributes that are important for a
communicator.

Prof. Trotman shared her story of “Resting face” during the class. In the same
way, I have my story of “Dress for confidence”. I come from the southern part of India
where people, especially women are judged for how they talk, dress, sit or even laugh.
The story goes back four years ago. In the year 2018, I joined Larsen and Toubro
constructions as a Graduate Engineer Trainee. I had technical training for my first 6
months. When joining the company few conditions and norms were provided to the new
joiners. The documents had a section stating the dress code with separate columns for
men and women. “All women are allowed to wear only Indian formals and western
formals which are not revealing and provoking”. I was comfortable wearing western
formals and I feel so confident in them the way I dress gives me confidence and
credibility to talk. I was assigned to work under a manager who asked me to wear only
Indian formals are there were many male employees in the office. I do wear Indian
formals; however, I am more comfortable wearing western formals during my
presentations. We, trainees, were asked to give a presentation on what we have learned
and on our progress in the past 6 months. I wore an Indian Formal to the presentation, I
am so cautious about how I look and how people respond to my presentation. My
appearance was something that made me feel less confident. I was recognized as the top-
performing candidate in my batch. To work for one of the leading projects this
presentation mattered a lot. Though I made an insightful presentation, my appearance,
and body language due to my dressing made me feel less confident. The audience was not
impressed by my presentation, and I did not get the opportunity to work on the project. I
questioned myself “why” and “how” it ended up that way. My superintendent after the
presentation gave me her feedback. Her feedback was, that you had very good content in
your presentation, however, your body language, confidence, and the way you appeared
acted as a drawback. And, ever since then, I learned my lesson. People read us like an
open book based on our nonverbal communication. If there is no synchronization in our
nonverbal with our verbal communication, then it’s a story with no emotions and
thoughts.

My story of “Stare Wars”. Our eyes are a powerful communication tool (Trotman,
Communication for Project Managers Week 3). One year ago, before getting admission
to the University of Maryland I was applying to various other universities in India. I got
an offer from the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing. I had a 2-round interview before
getting the admission. The 1st was a personal interview, 2nd was a group debate. I cleared
my interview. In my 2nd round, my opponent for debate was way more experienced than
me and with a very good technical background. Due to the pandemic, we were asked to
wear our masks during the debate event. To my surprise, I was the candidate who got
selected for the position. Back to the same question, how did this happen? One of the
members from the panel came up to me and told me that it’s your eye contact and eye
movement throughout the debate that made you ace the show. Eyes can be friendly,
political, and even assault weapons (Jowers, 2000). Controlling eye movement and
contact are the key points for engaging in nonverbal communication with the audience.

To conclude, communication is an important aspect of our day-to-day life, and the

entire world revolves around it (Jowers, 2000). More effective communication aligns
with better project management which aligns with a good project manager, and which
leads to a successful project. The difference between a good and bad project manager/
leader lies in the way you understand the essence of the quote. In the day-to-day life of a
project manager, there is countless nonverbal communication that accompanies what a
PM says to the team, stakeholders, and sponsors that are completely in our control, yet
the PM wonders how the words are conveyed in the wrong way (Jowers, 2000).
Nonverbal communications are essential for providing information, and exercising social
control (Aguinig, Simenson, & Pierce, 1998). Controlled eye contact and movement,
gestures with movements, body language, and appearance suffice to invite team members
into our perception or eyesight of how a project should run. And a Project Manager/
Leader needs to have this power. I consider this quote to be of high importance to me
both in my personal and professional life as it gives me the power of effective
communication.

My action plan describes how I intend to build my personal brand using the
techniques and strategies I learned in this course.

In the modern world, to be successful in a career, we need more than just

technical skills. Soft skills are the behavior skills that impact how well we can work and
engage in meaningful interaction with peers. For a project manager, it is very important
to build a collaborative team to be successful. The dependence of a PM's success on soft
skills arises from both personal and professional requirements. As a part of ENCE614, I
got an opportunity to learn the techniques and strategies required to build my personal
brand and stand out in the competitive world. In a Project manager' career, emotional
intelligence and communication skills are of utmost importance. Through this course, I
have learned how to assess my emotional intelligence and management skills, my
personality type, and how to be an effective communicator that can help me develop my
image as a Project Manager. Skills like storytelling and persuasion which were discussed
in this course will also help me better create my mission & vision and convey them to the
target audience through emotions.

During my job as an engineer, although I used to perform my duties related to

technical knowledge quite well, I always lacked in soft skill development. As an
engineer, I only focused on increasing my technical knowledge. This will be problematic
for me as I am going to pursue a career in project management where soft skills are often
more important than technical skills. One can measure proficiency in a certain soft skill
using physiological tests. But measuring the impact of a soft skill on the success of a
project is not easy (Gulati, Baroudi, & Gunawan, 2019). This leads me to select the
below-mentioned strategies and techniques as an action plan to learn and grow as a
successful Project Manager and build my brand in the industry.

Having a growth mindset. The presentation and the TED talk by Prof. Carol
Dweck emphasize the ability to develop and the power of yet. The presentation highlights
the differences between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. After going through the
presentation and videos, I questioned myself what is my mindset? Is failure the limit to
my abilities or an opportunity for growth? It is very important for a person to appreciate
their efforts, and this will help us to learn the power of yet.

Story Telling and persuasion are two important aspects of effective

communication. Aristotle theorized that communication without Ethos, Pathos, and
Logos is not effective at all (Gallo, 2018). The concept of Pathos in modern times is
conveyed through storytelling. Instead of stating facts, if one tries to communicate
through a story with its ups and downs, it engages the audience much more and gives a
memorable message to them. It should be conveyed in such a way that the listeners can
relate to the story and attach their emotions to it because humans are designed to seek
emotional connection. This becomes a crucial part of persuasion. Persuasion is often
misrepresented as manipulation. Communication is never persuasive without Logos
(Logical structure). The 8 influencing principles help us to influence and persuade others
to do what we want them to do. Some people have influence and persuasion as their traits
and for some, it’s stated like. The 8 principles are likeability, reciprocity, scarcity,
credibility, consistency, social proofing, potential loss vs potential gain, and request
magnitude. It requires the speaker to connect the argument to a larger vision that the
audience would want to support. The fact that these concepts were laid out by Aristotle
more than 2000 years ago and are still studied now, never ceases to amaze me.
Storytelling isn’t a soft skill, storytelling is fundamental (Gallo, 2018, p. 52). It is like
hard cash to humans (Gallo, 2018). Storytelling is often a natural and effective way to get
your message across (O'Hair & Rubenstein, 2016, p. 94). When I prepare for an
upcoming presentation, I will ask these questions myself, Am I just stating facts, or am I
telling a story? Can the audience emotionally connect to my story? What do I want the
audience to do/ what do I want to convey? Is there a logical reason why I want the
audience to do it? Is there a larger purpose to it other than just the reasons I am stating?
To build a personal brand, one should focus on their background story. It is these stories
that tell people how much a person has grown through the difficulties. Skills like
storytelling and persuasion not only help in developing a convincing story that conveys
the strong points about oneself but also help to reach them emotionally.
 Public speaking skill has become both a vital life skill and an important skill in
career advancement (O'Hair & Rubenstein, 2016). Whether in the classroom, workplace,
or public places, the ability to speak confidently and persuade the audience is
invigorating. Gravitas is what matters to move to leadership or commanding position.
People notice that we have gravitas because we communicate the authority of a leader
through our speaking skills and commanding skills. The speaker might be the smartest
person in the room, but no one will pay attention to the speaker who is rambling and has
a timid manner. Public speaking is an asset and a necessary skill that lasts with us for a
very long time. My long-term career goal is to be a successful project manager. To reach
my goal not just good communication skills but also gravitas is required. Since the day I
started reading Pocket Guide for Public Speaking book, I implemented various practices
to overcome my flaws in public speaking (O'Hair & Rubenstein, 2016). To overcome my
pre-preparation and performance anxiety, I will take feedback from people and rehearse it
repeatedly. I will also incorporate natural and controlled movements to confidently
present myself and enjoy the moment. Public speaking also has a huge impact on the
image one develops in front of the target audience. How one presents themselves,
communicates ideas, and can manage interesting talks/sessions with a group of people
defines the project manager's level of non-verbal communication.

The course Communication for Project Managers changed how I perceived

networking to be in two ways. Firstly, it made me realize how I completely
underestimated the importance of Networking, and secondly, how to build a network
effectively. I used to be of the mindset that, networking is for people who are looking for
work opportunities, and I need not be concerned about it until that stage. I believed that
all it took for networking was sending that connect request on LinkedIn or sending an
email to an old colleague. Now, I understand that building a network is a slow continuous
process and it never stops. Networking is about building relationships. Whenever there is
a technical talk or presentation from a person in the industry, I strike up a conversation
with them, tell them a bit about me and try to get their business card. Later, I also connect
with them on LinkedIn. I put effort into catchup to everyone’s updates on LinkedIn,
following my peers' progress, and congratulating them on their achievements, so that
when the time comes, they remember me in their network. I attend all the networking
events and career fairs organized by the department. From the perspective of building a
personal brand, networking plays an important role in image development. A person as a
brand can reach different people and convey their mission, vision, and core values, along
with what they have to offer the target audience only through a carefully developed vast
network of peers in that area. Using the skills taught in class to improve networking like
presentation, touching base, referencing, and business card exchanges, I can develop a
better-quality personal brand image.

Another important concept and technique learned from the ENCE614 course is
the personality assessment and knowing what shapes our personality. Having worked as
an engineer for 3 years, I realized that there is a huge difference between the
responsibilities and skills needed by an engineer and a manager. Knowing my personality
type will help me to understand myself and those around me in a better way. It’s a total
game-changer for a person trying to enter the industry to know how and why the
preferences of one differ from those of others. Knowing more about my style will help
me improve my listening skills and to consider other people’s opinions. As a part of week
8, I got to learn about Conflict Management. Different styles of conflict management
vary in the importance of achieving goals by the importance of relationships. I have a
collaborative conflict resolution style. No conflict style is necessarily better than another.
However, the collaborating conflict management style is highly desirable in the
workplace because here both the parties engage in mutually beneficial options that create
a win-win situation. Knowing one’s conflict style helps to identify our reaction to a
conflict, goals when we encounter a conflict, our instinctive reactions, and pros and cons
when we respond in a certain way. Understanding my personality style and conflict
management style is very important to developing my personal brand image. Through
these assessments like DISC and JUNG, I can identify what kind of environment I thrive
in, what kind of work is suitable for me, etc. With this information at hand, I can
personalize my brand to target those areas of work, where I can perform better and
deliver better results.

To conclude, all styles have strengths and weaknesses. Our preferences depend on
the way we direct and receive energy, the way we take in information, the way we decide
and conclude, the way we solve problems, and the way we approach this world. Whether
it is Dominance style, collaborating style, and an ISTJ type, I embrace it because it is my
preference. Each person has something to offer and learn that enhances their contribution
to this world. Each of us even can learn how to flex into different styles and types,
influence and persuade, and ace a public event with confidence. It also teaches me about
using how to use Ethos, Logos, and Pathos in my story (Gallo, 2018, pp. 153-186). The
course Communication for Project Managers has not only thought me the appropriate
techniques to improve my communication skills but also the ability to build myself and
stand out in the crowd as a unique and confident person.

Handling crucial scenarios: What will I do? What will I say? Why I have chosen this
course of action?

The first thing I would do in such a situation is to schedule a meeting with my

boss. Before talking to my boss, I would try to understand what is it that I want
(Patterson, Gerry, & McMillan, 2002, p. 32). In this situation, the most ideal outcome for
me to expect would be a reduction in my workload, as well as a pay raise, without
sabotaging my relationship with my boss. I should also identify the Sucker’s Choice
(Patterson, Gerry, & McMillan, 2002, p. 38), to avoid them during the conversation.
Sucker’s choice here would be thinking that either I must resign from the job because of
workload and low pay, or fight for a raise and ruin my relationship with my boss. I would
start my conversation as follows:” I am concerned about the additional workload that I
am being allotted. My plate is more than full at this point, and I am struggling to manage
everything that has been assigned to me. The stress and responsibilities that I am taking
are significantly higher than what used to be.”

Given that I know my style under stress, I should be on the watch if I am the one
who is losing control. First, I will identify if I am in some form of silence/violence [Act].
From that, I will find what emotions are leading to me acting this way [Feel]. Then I
analyze what stories am I telling myself that are leading to these emotions [Tell story].
From this, I will get back to the facts, and analyze the evidence for the story [See/hear]
(Patterson, Gerry, & McMillan, 2002, p. 102). I will also use the STATE approach to
identify their views. I will first share the facts: “It looks like more and more workers are
being assigned to me.” Then I will share my story: “I am already overburdened with work
here, and my request for a pay raise was rejected recently.” Then I will ask the boss path:
“Is there a reason why I am being overburdened here? Is there a problem between us?”
Then I will ‘talk tentatively’: “I am starting to feel like there is some issue between us. It
looks like I am under too much pressure here because of some personal issue. Is that
right?” Finally, I will encourage testing: “Am I missing something? I would like to hear
your side of the story.”

Having said that, I would look out for cues that indicate if the safety is at risk. I
will do this by observing the boss’ reaction for any signs of silence or violence. If the
boss tries to avoid the topic or reacts aggravatedly, I can conclude that the conversation
safety is at risk. If the safety is found to be at risk, I should step out and take necessary
measures to bring back safety. For that, first I will apologize and contrast (Patterson,
Gerry, & McMillan, 2002, p. 76) by saying: “I am sorry if it sounded like I am blaming
you. I don’t want you to think that I don’t appreciate everything you have done for my
career growth. I believe everything you’ve done till now is for my best.” Then, I will take
the CRIB approach to arrive at a solution (Patterson, Gerry, & McMillan, 2002, p. 82). I
will commit to finding a solution by saying: “I understand that you must delegate the
additional work to someone. But I am struggling to manage all the work that you are
assigning to me. I am sure there must be some solution to this.” To recognize the purpose
behind the boss’ strategy, I will ask him: “Why is the additional work delegated to me,
who is already overburdened with the workload?” This would help me identify a
common mutual purpose. “I do not want to resign from the job because I love my work. I
also do not want to fight you against the unfair amount of work I have been assigned and
my raise request rejection. It would only make the situation between us worse. I would
like to find a solution that is beneficial for both of us”. Understanding this leads to the
final step, brainstorming solutions. For this, I would say: “I am willing to take the new
responsibilities and duties, but I believe I am severely underpaid for the stress I am
taking. I will be more than happy to take up new responsibilities if I receive a pay raise.
But since my previous request for pay raise was rejected, I understand that it is not
possible from your end. In that case, if you can assign a subordinate to me, to whom I can
delegate some of my work, it would take a lot of stress from me.”

I will also use Aristotle’s theory of persuasion (Gallo, 2018) to better convey my
issues, i.e. by using ethos, pathos, and logos. I will establish my credibility by saying “I
have been working here for x years and my performance has been above required. I have
always ensured that I put my best for all projects assigned to me and live up to the
standard of our company.” To show the issue logically, I will show the boss my
performance statistics, and how much work I am doing. “I have been leaving my office at
8 PM regularly for the past 2 months. Even after leaving the office, I am attending
meetings and finish work late at night at home.” Finally, I will appeal to emotions by
saying how I am struggling to manage my work-life balance, stress management, and
family, with so much workload. “I understand that you have no choice but to delegate
this work to your subordinates. But I am overloaded with work already and I am
struggling to manage my work-life balance. My lack of sleep and stress relief is affecting
my performance.”
 In conclusion, to make sure that this crucial conversation does not end in a failed
conversation, I will make use of the CRIB and STATE approach, along with Aristotle’s
theory of persuasion.

How to conduct Stakeholder Analysis for a new project and how to avoid
communication problems while managing big problems and how to avoid the
pitfalls

PMI defines stakeholders as individuals and organizations who are actively

involved in the project, or whose interests may be positively or negatively affected as a
result of project execution or successful project completion (Institute, 1996). Project
Stakeholders are groups of people who have something to gain or lose from the output of
the project. A project cannot be led and be done by a single person or a project manager.
The PM has to depend on, work with and report back to people and these people are the
stakeholders (What is a project stakeholder?, n.d.). The type of stakeholders and the
number of stakeholders differs from project to project and from phase to phase of a
project. It is the responsibility of the Project Manager to inform, involve and keep all the
stakeholders on board throughout the project. Stakeholder happiness is the main aspect of
a successful project. So, it’s very important to know who the stakeholders are, what they
do, what they want, how they work, why they matter, and how to work with them. There
will be both internal and external stakeholders in a project. Once the project charter is
completed and the scope is identified the Project Manager should start working on listing
out the stakeholders. As a Project Manager to lead a project successfully it is important to
gather the project team members to discuss, evaluate, plan and document all the
requirements of the stakeholders and their impact and influence on the project. To get
these issues sorted it is highly useful to do a stakeholder analysis as it can tackle the
complexities.

Stakeholder Analysis can be done in three steps.

1. Identify your Stakeholders

As a process of step one, we must identify who are the stakeholders. Consider both
internal and external stakeholders, team members, financial sponsors, and even the end-
users. Each of these differs from project to project. Taking the project charter, project
plan, and other relevant documents into consideration for preparing the stakeholders will
be of great help. Brainstorm and consider all the people who will be affected by the
project, success, or failure of the project.

As a part of part1 in prompt D, being a Project Manager I have identified a list of

stakeholders for the project. They are Clients, Project Managers, Contractors,
Consultants, Architect/ Engineer, Subcontractor, Investors (sponsors, financers), Project
team members, Project employees (engineers, workers,
 and labors), Suppliers, Regulatory Authorities, and local residents (also the end-users in
the case of my project).

2. Prioritize your Stakeholders

Once all the stakeholders are identified, we should go ahead with prioritizing our
stakeholders. Prioritizing can be done by considering the level of influence and level of
interest of the stakeholders in our project. This step is very important as it helps us to
prioritize where to invest our time and resources. The stakeholder power grid is the tool
that helps us to show actions we need to take with them (Team, n.d.). The grid has 4
parts, high power high interested people, high power low interested people, low power
high interested people, low power low interested people.

Keep Satisfied
Manage Closely
Investors
Client
Regulatory Authorities

Keep Informed
Contractor
Monitor Subcontractor
Suppliers Project Manager
Consultants Architect/ Engineer
Workers and labors Project Engineers
Team Members
Local Residents (end users)
Considering the above-mentioned list of stakeholders, below is the grid of stakeholders
based on their priority, Power/ Interest

Power
3. Understand the Stakeholders

As we now know the key stakeholders and which ones to prioritize, we need to
understand how they feel about the project, their expectations, and their goals about the
project. The Project Manager must meet the key stakeholders at the beginning of the
project to understand each stakeholder, their involvement, the project, and their style of
communication (Smith, 2000). The PM can have a small face-to-face or video
conversation with each stakeholder asking various questions. What is their definition of
project success? Do they have any financial or emotional interests in the project
outcome? (What is a project stakeholder?, n.d.) What motivates them? Who influences
their opinion? Are the people who influence part of this project? What are their
expectations of the project and the PM? How will the positive or negative impact of
positive impact them? Do they have any conflicts with other stakeholders? Finally, if a

Interest
 PM cannot win their support, what can the PM do to win their support? All these
questions will not only help a Project Manager to analyze and understand the
stakeholders, but also know their political and cultural conflicts with other stakeholders,
and how they interact with each other.

After doing the stakeholder analysis, the Project Manager has a bigger role. The
PM must be in touch with the stakeholders throughout the project. PM should be able to
balance everyone’s needs, requirements, and objectives to keep stakeholders happy. PM
should manage the stakeholders throughout the project, document the roles and
responsibilities of the stakeholders, and communicate with stakeholders by preparing a
communication matrix to avoid communication problems.

Communication problems in big projects:

1) Number of stakeholders: The number of possible communication channels possible

within a project of ‘n’ stakeholders is n(n-1)/2. The number of channels increases
quadratically with each additional employee. Consider a medium-sized project of 10
stakeholders. The number of possible communication paths is 55. If there is a project
scope change and the email notifying it is a little vague, there could be 55 different
emails asking for clarification. As the size of stakeholders increases, the complexity
increases quadratically. To avoid this problem, every report and email must be checked
for clarity and follow a standard format that ensures this. If any issue with the
communicated message is found, it should be corrected immediately to resolve any
miscommunication. (Leybourne, Kanabar, & Warburton, 2010)

2) Cultural differences: Another challenge in communication is due to cultural differences.

The effectiveness of multi-cultural communication depends on various factors like their
attitudes toward hierarchy, their communication styles with others, their ability to
understand our language, and how they might interpret and process what we tell them in
our communications. Even within a country, people from different parts might interpret a
word differently. The solution to such a problem is not straightforward. One approach
could be to include a summary at the end of each report or email that briefly describes the
report again in simpler words. In a face-to-face or video conferencing update, the sender
can encourage questions that can clear up confusion attributed to cultural differences. The
sender should also ensure that no local references or terminology creeps into such a
report/email. (Leybourne, Kanabar, & Warburton, 2010)

3) Too much information: Sometimes the report or email might contain too much
information or raw data that the receiver needs to sort through the data and get the
relevant information needed. This can be because the sender trying to send all the
obtained data just to be careful that they didn’t miss anything. A solution to this is that
every employee or stakeholder needs to stick to a particular format of sending
information. The sender must carefully go through the communication plan to understand
what the receiver is expecting and send only that information. (Mirza, 2017)

4) Environment and time zone: These days, project stakeholders can be present in different
regions and time zones. This can lead to difficulty in scheduling meeting times
comfortable for all stakeholders. Also, if the construction site is very noisy, or at a remote
location, network problems and a lack of proper information transfer might occur. To
avoid this, the communication plan must specify the proper channels and a schedule that
is possible for all stakeholders. Noisy and remote construction sites should be well
prepared with a meeting room with a good connection for communicating with the
stakeholders. (Naybour, 2020)

Communication Plan

A communication plan is an outline of how a Project Management will communicate will

the key stakeholders of a project. The prompt mentioned here is that I am the Project
Manager of a new construction project and I have to provide a communication plan to
ensure the free flow of information among the client, team members, project manager,
key stakeholders, and other mandatory audience.

As mentioned in the stakeholder analysis the identified stakeholders are Client, Project
Manager, Contractors, Consultants, Architect/ Engineer, Subcontractor, Investors
(sponsors, financers), Project team members, Project employees (engineers, workers,
and labors), Suppliers, Regulatory Authorities, and local residents (also the end-users in
the case of my project). I have identified 10 stakeholders excluding me (Project
Manager).

Communication Paths or Channels required: N(N-1)/ 2

N= No of stakeholders = 11
Total Communication Channels= 11x10/2 = 55

However, the Project Manager can reduce the number of channels by dividing the
stakeholders into subgroups based on roles, responsibilities, and goals.
In this scenario, I have covered 11 communication paths (Required are 10 for the prompt)
Communication Plan

Project Name:

UMD Engineering Building Project

Prepared By: Priyanka Erripothu

Position: Project Manager
Date: 23rd April 2022
Version No: 1.0
Document Change Control

The following is the document control for the revisions to this document.
Version Number Date of Issue Author(s) Brief Description of
Change
1.0 04/23/2022 Priyanka Erripothu Preliminary
Communication Plan

Definition

The following are definitions of terms, abbreviations, and acronyms used in this
document.

Term Definition
UMD University of Maryland
CP Communication Plan
A/E Architect/ Engineer

Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page i

Table of Contents
1. Introduction …………………………………………………………..1
2. Communication Objectives……………………………………………..1
3. Communication Purpose and Target Audiences………………………2
4. Communication Message and Delivery…………………………………
3
5. Communication Message Contents……………………………………..4
Appendix………………………………………………………....................6
Target Audience
Participants……………………………………………...6

Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page ii

1. Introduction

The purpose of the communication plan is to ensure the University of Maryland

Engineering Building Project provides relevant, accurate, high-level strategies, goals, and
consistent project information to the client, project team members, project stakeholders,
and other appropriate audiences. By effectively communicating the project can
accomplish its work with the support and cooperation of each stakeholder group.

The communication plan provides a framework to manage and coordinate the wide
variety of communications that take place during the project. The communication plan
covers who will receive the communications, how the communications will be delivered,
what information will be communicated, who communicates, and the frequency of the
communications.

The intended audience of the UMD Engineering Building Project CP is the project
manager, project team, contractors, client, subcontractor, A/E, and any other stakeholders
whose support is needed to carry out the project.

2. Communication Objectives

Effective and open communications are critical to the success of the project.

The key objective of a Communications Plan is to promote the success of a project by

meeting the information needs of project stakeholders and outline the goals of the
communications efforts to reach and inform each group

Without detailed plans for communications activities that identify the organizational,
policy, and material resources needed to carry them out, the UMD Engineering Building
Project will not be able to secure needed resources, coordinate efforts with other groups,
or report its activities and results to key oversight stakeholders.

Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page 1

3. Communication Purpose and Target Audiences

This section identifies the audiences targeted in this Communication Plan and the purpose
of communicating with each audience. A complete list of the participants in each
audience can be found in the Appendix.

Audience Communication Purpose

Client To review project status and discuss errors and delays.
Consultant To discuss various information/documents provided by the
owner from the consultant.
Contractor To discuss project reviews, and work progress, present
deliverables, gather feedback and discuss the next step.
Architect/Engineer To discuss any design-related issues, change orders, and any
updates to the design based on site conditions.
Project Manager To review project status reports, phase reviews, order reviews,
and task progress updates.
Team Members/ To discuss what each project member did yesterday, what they
Employees will do today, and any deviation in the schedule.
Investors To discuss the budget of the project, the flow of resources, and
when and how to disburse the funds.
Subcontractors To discuss project status, deliverables, work orders, errors, and
delays.
Suppliers To discuss the updates on availability and requirements of new
resources, assess what resources were delivered, and what is
expected to be delivered.
Regulatory Authorities To discuss approvals required by regulatory authorities,
permits, and clauses present in the contract, that are required
and enforced in construction.
Local Residents To give updates on traffic diversions and any change in the
surrounding area of the site and inform them about the
upcoming events dangerous to residents.

Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page 2

4. Communication Message and Delivery

The following outlines the targeted audiences, the key communication messages to be delivered, the method for delivering the
information, the communicator, and the frequency of the delivery.

Audience Message Delivery Channels Frequency Communicator

Client Project Status Review Face-to-Face communication/ Video Monthly Contractor
conferences/emails
Consultant Project Review Face-to-Face communication/ Video At the beginning of Client
conferences/emails the project, when
there are change
orders
Contractor Tracking Project and Face-to-Face communication/ Phone At each milestone Client
Progress Calls/emails, Reports

Architect/Engineer Phase Review, Design Face-to-Face communication/ Video At each milestone Contractor
Review conferences
Project Manager Project Kick-off, Project Face-to-Face communication/ Video Weekly Contractor
status report, and review conferences/ Phone Calls/emails/
Reports
Team Roles and Face-to-Face communication/Phone Daily (Max 1 week) Project
Members/Employee responsibilities, task Calls/emails/ Reports Manager
s status report, project
progress review
Investors Request for inflow of Emails At each phase Contractor
funds.
Subcontractors Project Status Review Face-to-Face communication/Phone Weekly (Max 15 Contractor
Calls / Reports days)
Suppliers Order Requests Phone Calls/ emails At each phase Subcontractor
(Milestone)
Regulatory Request for approvals Face-to-Face At the beginning of Contractor
Authorities and permits for communication/emails/written the project
construction communication

Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page 3

 Audience Message Delivery Channels Frequency Communicator
Local Residents Notice traffic diversions, Newsletters/Posters During construction Project
and updates on dangerous Manager
construction activity.

Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page 4

5. Communication Message Contents

The section outlines the contents of the key communications.

Project Status Review

- Goals of the Project
- Project Status update
- Deliverables
- Schedule
- Project Problems and Issues
- Reworks
- Discussing next step
- Project Status Report

Project Review
- Goals of Project
- Documents
- Check and verify reports
- Change orders
- Feedbacks
- Next step

Order Request
- Discuss orders
- Check supplies
- Verify materials supplied
- Check for errors in supplies
- Quality check for supplied materials
- Order review report

Task Progress Updates

- Team Standup
- Daily updates on work
- Deliverables
- Deviations from schedule
- Goals for that particular week
- Project Problems and issues
- Work Progress
- Task Progress Report

Phase Review
- Goals of the Project
- Roles and Responsibilities
- Project Plan
- Designs
- Deliverables
- Milestones
- Change Orders
- Claims
Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page 5
- Next Step

Design Review
- Design documents
- Discussions
- Changes in designs
- Feasibility with site

Project Kick-off
- Goals of the Project
- Roles and Responsibilities
- Milestones
- Schedule
- Deliverables

Request for funds

- Documents
- Request orders
- Details about the fund's requirement
- Mode of funds transfer
- Inflow of funds

Request for Approvals

- Document
- Clauses
- Permits and approvals
- Teams and Conditions
- Parties involve

Notice to Local Residents

- Information on Traffic Diversions
- Evacuation orders
- Updates on dangerous construction works

Communication Plan for UMD Engineering Building Project Page 6

Appendix

Target Audience Participants

Audience Participants Organization

Client Company Owner State of Maryland
Consultant Geotechnical team, Hydrology PQR Consultants
team
Contractor Senior Management, Project XYZ Builders Inc.
Manager
Architect/Engineer Architects, Design Engineers ABC Designs
Project Manager Project Managers, Engineering XYZ Builders Inc.
Managers, Resource Managers
Team Site Engineers, laborers, XYZ Builders Inc., Subcontractor 1,
Members/Employees mechanical, electrical team, Subcontractor 2
Investors Sponsors, Creditors IJK Bank, A1 Surety Ltd.
Subcontractors Project Managers, Engineering Subcontractor 1, Subcontractor 2
Managers, Resource Managers
Suppliers Vendors V1 Suppliers, V2 Suppliers, V3
Suppliers
Regulatory Government agencies Maryland State regulators, Local
Authorities councils
Local Residents Students, Faculty, employees University of Maryland
Conclusion

The course Communication for Project Managers has not only thought me the appropriate
techniques to improve my communication skills but also the ability to flex from one style to
other with these communication skills. It also teaches me about using how to use Ethos, Logos,
and Pathos in my story (Gallo, 2018, pp. 153-186) . At my previous job, Critical feedback would
offend me often instead of me taking it as a way for improvement. This lack of self-awareness
limited me from understanding and appreciating the differences of my team members. In short, I
was unable to be a good team player. Through the course-required readings, class activities, and
presentations I learned various strategies and techniques to face crucial conversations and to be a
better team player by not taking the fool’s choice (Patterson, Gerry, & McMillan, 2002, pp. 119-
215). All personality types have strengths and weaknesses. End of the day, there are no “good”
or “bad” preferences or “good” or “bad” personality types for any role in an organization. Each
person has something to offer and learn that enhances their contribution to this world. Each of us
even can learn how to flex into different styles and types. Prof. Trotman and the assessments
taken as a part of ENCE614 helped me a lot to know about myself and my peers.
Communication for Project Managers is a great course that helped me to learn, grow, have a
growth mindset, mold, and prepare myself for the corporate world. I am confident that all the
concepts, techniques, and strategies learned as a part of ENCE614 will help me to become a
successful Project Manager.
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