COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT PLAN

[Agency Name]
[PROJECT NAME]
[Publish Date]

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

TABLE OF CONTENTS
USING THIS TEMPLATE.....................................................................................................................1
REVISIONS........................................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................................3
PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES..............................................................................................................3
STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS REQUIREMENTS.........................................................................4
COMMUNICATIONS ASSESSMENT & ANALYSIS.................................................................................5
COMMUNICATIONS DESIGN..............................................................................................................7
DEVELOP COMMUNICATIONS.........................................................................................................10
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS.......................................................................................................11
EVALUATE COMMUNICATIONS........................................................................................................13
GUIDELINES FOR MEETINGS...........................................................................................................13
PROJECT TEAM DIRECTORY...........................................................................................................13
ACCEPTANCE..................................................................................................................................15
APPENDIX A (SAMPLE) COMMUNICATION MATRIX.....................................................................16
APPENDIX B DELIVERY VEHICLES & MEDIA..............................................................................18
APPENDIX C - GUIDELINES FOR MEETINGS...................................................................................20

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

USING THIS TEMPLATE

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Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

REVISIONS
R EVISION
v1

D ESCRIPTION

OF

C HANGE

Initial document upload to TBSM

intranet site

A UTHOR
BSD Team

E FFECTIVE D ATE
09/28/12

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

INTRODUCTION
The purpose of the Communication Management Plan is to define the communication
requirements for the project and how information will be distributed to and feedback received
from all stakeholders. The Communication Management Plan is a working document that
defines the following:
Stakeholder communication requirements
Analysis, design, development and evaluation of communications
Identification and best use of communication vehicles
Handling recurring and triggered communications
Communication standards for the project
The Communication approval process
Completion and use of the Communication Matrix
This Communication Management Plan sets the communications framework for the [Project
Name] project. It serves as a guide for communications throughout the life of the project. This
is a working document and will be updated as communication needs change. This plan
identifies and defines the stakeholders of [Project Name] with whom it is critical to
communicate. It also contains the Communication Matrix (Appendix A) which maps specific
messages to stakeholders or stakeholder groups. The items captured on the Communications
Matrix are then built into the [Project Name] Project Schedule.
To build a complete communication plan, it is highly recommended that the Project Director
and/or team member responsible for communications planning (Organization Change
Management team lead or other) guide the project team through several steps to ensure that the
plan is as robust and effective as possible. These steps include:
Clearly define the high-level purpose and objectives of Project communications
Identify Stakeholder Communication Requirements
Assessment and Analysis
Design
Development
Delivery
Evaluation

PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

The purpose of all [Project Name] communication is to:
Promote awareness of and excitement for the [Project Name] project
Ensure adoption of the responsibilities and actions assigned to each stakeholder, and
Encourage two-way communication about the [Project Name] project between the project
team and Agency stakeholder groups

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS REQUIREMENTS

In the Communication Management Plan, it is important to identify all stakeholders and
anticipate their communication needs. This section combines the stakeholders captured in the
Stakeholder Register with the Project Roles & Responsibilities Template and adds each
stakeholders or stakeholder groups communication needs. The result is a Stakeholder
Communications Requirements table (sample below).
The communication needs of [Project Name] stakeholders have been identified and are presented
in the Stakeholder Communications Requirements table below. The analysis includes all project
team member roles and responsibilities, including their communication responsibilities. In
addition, the requirements of the non-project team stakeholders are also captured.
Sample Stakeholder Communications Requirements
Role

Description

Executive
Sponsor

Champions the
project; provides
high level vision

Communication
Communication Needs
Responsibilities
Project Team Stakeholders
Thorough understanding of
Project Charter and Project
Management Plan

Provides guidance and

direction for key
communication strategies

Up-to-date Project Status

Project Risks and Responses
Project issues and obstacles

Communicates business
vision

The role of the

Business Sponsor
is to provide
guidance and
direction for key
business
strategies. The
Business Sponsor
answers the
business-driven qu
estion, "Why are
we doing this?"
and ensures that
all stakeholders
know and
understand the
answer.

Joe Smith
Ann Walker
Rita Rogue

Communicates high-level
issue resolution decisions

Sponsorship-specific
communications
tactics/techniques

Business
Sponsor

Name/Group

Communications should be
presented in summary format
unless the Project Sponsor
requests more detailed
communications
Thorough understanding of
Project Charter and Project
Management Plan
Up-to-date Project Status
Project Risks and Responses
Project issues and obstacles
Sponsorship-specific
communications
tactics/techniques
Communications should be
presented in summary format
unless the Project Sponsor
requests more detailed
communications

Approves and/or delivers

strategic project
communications

Communicates the
resolution of business
policy issues
Communicates issues
needing escalation and
business decisions to
executive levels
Provides input into issues
resolution alternatives
before they are brought to
executive levels
Deliverables
Provides Agency
communications resource

Joe Smith
Carl Numenth

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]
Role
Senior Project
Director

Description

Communication
Communication Needs
Responsibilities
Project Team Stakeholders

The Senior Project

Director owns and
drives the solution
delivery process.
He/she mobilizes
and uses the
project team to
complete the
project
successfully. This
role is responsible
and accountable
for the overall
planning,
execution and
control of the
project, including
communication.

Business vision from Executive

Sponsor

Customer Service
Representatives
are responsible for
efficient and
accurately
answering
questions about
the XXX program.
They use the XXX
system constantly
and are evaluated
on their speed of
response to
customer
questions.
Claims Processors
are responsible for
efficient and
accurate program
claims processing,
including
verification and
validation of
submitted
information,
determining
eligibility, and
processing
payments. This
group is
responsible for
and evaluated on
speed and quality
of data, which is
entered in XXX
system.

Project progress updates

Immediate notice of business

decisions, policy changes, etc.
that could impact execution of the
project
Status from project team
leadership
Communication initiatives,
artifacts, review and approval
processes

Oversees the
implementation of the
project on a daily basis,
working with the project
work stream leads (such as
OCM Lead) to ensure
consistent communication

Name/Group
Sara Project

Responsible for clear,

timely, documented, correct
communication with project
team and executive
leadership
Communicates project
progress and directions to
the project team and
Sponsors

Non-Project Team Stakeholders

Customer
Service
Representative
s

Claims
Processors

Participates in CSR focus

groups and new system
demonstrations.

Benefits of new system

System implementation dates
Training dates
Access to [Project Name] intranet
site

Project progress updates

Provides feedback to project

team members.
Reads communications and
performs tasks accordingly.

Participates in Claims
Processor focus groups and
new system demonstrations.

Benefits of new system

System implementation dates
Training dates
Access to [Project Name] intranet
site

Agency CSRs and

Supervisors

Provides feedback to project

team members.
Reads communications and
performs tasks accordingly.

Agency Claims
Processors and
Supervisors

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

COMMUNICATIONS ASSESSMENT & ANALYSIS

The purpose of this step is to gather data about the effectiveness of the Agencys existing
communications, the existing communication flow, and what infrastructure the Agency has in
place to support communication planning and delivery.
Existing communications are documented in the Communications Matrix (Appendix A). The
project team can then use this analysis to determine whether or not to use existing
communication vehicles for project-related communications. As the project progresses, new
communication vehicles related to the project itself will be added to the Communications Matrix
and, eventually, to the Project Schedule.
Communications Matrix
The Communications Matrix provides structure to identify all types of communications: Project
Team, Stakeholder, Recurring and Triggered. It is recommended that the matrix begin with
Project Team communication items followed by Stakeholder communication items. As
unanticipated or anticipated trigger events occur, the communication response should be added to
the matrix.
The [Project Name] Communication Management Plan includes an assessment and analysis of
the Agencys existing communications that impact the projects stakeholder populations. The
result of this assessment and analysis is recorded in the Communication Matrix (Appendix A),
along with a numerical rating of the effectiveness of each communication item based on
feedback from Agency personnel. This rating allows the [Project Name] project team to take
advantage of existing Agency communication vehicles for project-related communication.
Once the existing communication deliverables have all been documented and evaluated, analyze
the results using the following questions:
Is the information clearly communicated? Written without slang and at a level that
employees can understand (i.e., not overly technical or complicated)?
Is the information delivered on a schedule that makes sense? Do communications come
too far in advance, too late for action, too sporadically, etc.?
Is the communication item concise and its purpose clear? Is the information
unnecessarily wordy? Is it written with the employees needs and perspective in mind?
Is the action the employees need to take clearly outlined?
The analysis of [Agency Name] communications found that communications are delivered
mainly orally and are undocumented. This causes some confusion in the employee population
since word-of-mouth is the least effective means of delivering messages. Since there is no one
person dedicated to ensuring Agency-wide communication effectiveness, most of the information
the employee base needs to be successful is left to Agency leadership to trickle down through
the management/supervisory level. Often these leaders, managers and supervisors forget to share
the information or fail to provide context for the message due to their own workloads.
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To help the Agencys leaders disseminate information about the project more effectively, the
[Project Name] Project Director or Organizational Change Management (OCM) team lead will
ensure careful documentation of all meetings and be responsible for editing and ensuring
consistency in project communication. They will also provide leader talking points for critical
updates to Agency employees regarding project progress.
The analysis of current Agency communications also found that both Agency leader meetings
and the Agencys intranet site were the most effective as delivery vehicles for disseminating
messages that invite positive action and behavior. The [Project Name] will take advantage of
these methods to disseminate project-related information.
The [Project Name] communication needs will also require development of new communication
vehicles to ensure that critical project-related messaging reaches the appropriate stakeholder
groups. As the project identifies and creates these vehicles, they will be added to the
Communication Matrix (Appendix A).

COMMUNICATIONS DESIGN
After concluding the assessment and analysis, the data gathered is used to populate the
Communication Matrix (Appendix A). In this step, the Project Director or OCM team lead will
identify the projects communication needs, create Agency ownership for the messaging, and add
communication deliverables to the Communication Matrix.
There are two broad stakeholder groups and two categories of communication in any project:
Project Team Communications
Stakeholder Communications
Recurring Communications which are regularly-scheduled and generally provide updates
and status on project activity
Triggered Communications which are created when certain events occur. These trigger
events can be anticipated (e.g., milestone dates met) or unanticipated (e.g., project delays
caused by changing legislation). The anticipated trigger events are entered into the
Communication Matrix. Unanticipated trigger events are only added to the
Communication Matrix after the communication response has been delivered for project
documentation purposes.
Thoroughly considering the messages the project needs to deliver over the course of the project
life cycle, the stakeholder groups needs for information, and ensuring consistency in messages
delivered via training and change management initiatives is critical to reducing confusion, nonproductive tasks/activities, and resistance to change.
The Communication Matrix for [Project Name] (Appendix A) includes a solid structure for
project team communication, as well as a framework for non-project team stakeholder
communications.
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Project Team Communication Design
The Project Director is responsible for the smooth, efficient execution of any project. Key to his
or her ability to ensure timeliness and quality before, during and after a project is effective and
planned project communications. The Project Director sets the guidelines and rules for project
communications. These guidelines could include directions for how/when to report status, the
process to escalate risks and/or questions for project leadership consideration, meeting rules such
as requiring agendas and meeting minutes, the approval process for non-project team stakeholder
communications, etc.
It is important for the Project Director to fully understand the communication needs of the
project team stakeholders, including the Project Steering Committee (PSC). The Project Director
should also explore every available delivery vehicle to take advantage of the abundance of media
currently on the market. The more variety of message delivery, the better it will be absorbed and
remembered.
The Project Director will take a proactive role in ensuring effective communications for the
[Project Name]]. The communications of [Project Name] team members will include status
reporting, all-hands team meetings in which the health of the project and requests/requirements
of the Project Steering Committee or project leadership are reviewed, and ad hoc
communications, via email, meetings, reports and/or conference calls as appropriate.
The Project Director also ensures that the communication infrastructure for the project team is
created. For example he/she will ensure that the Agency establishes an email distribution list of
all project team members, appropriate Agency intranet access is provided, and a project team
contact list is created.
Non-Project Team Stakeholder Communication Design
In a large, complex IT project, communications, change management initiatives and training are
inextricably bound. Depending on the skills of the resources and the complexity of the project,
these functions often work together within one Organizational Change Management team.
Smaller projects may not warrant a full OCM team, in which case the Project Director is
responsible for design and development of communications to non-project team stakeholders.
The OCM team leader, if applicable, works closely with the Project Director to set
communication standards, analyze stakeholder communication needs, determine the approach for
communicating ad hoc information, identify available delivery vehicles, and determine standard
responses to triggered events. All formal project communications to stakeholders must be
approved by the Project Director and the Executive Sponsor.
There are several communication opportunities to reach, educate, and gain buy-in and support
from stakeholders of the [Project Name]. Since the project team is also a stakeholder group, they
are sometimes recipients of the same communications as non-project team stakeholders. Taking
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[Project Name]
advantage of these opportunities and timing the release of communications appropriately is vital
to insuring a successful project. For [Project Name], following are some of the ways that
[Project Name] will achieve information sharing, action and project acceptance from its
stakeholders:
[Project Name] Branding
Role-Specific Communications
Multi-media Supported Communications (video/audio, social media)
Mini polls and surveys
Newsletter articles
Change Champion talking points and presentations
Frequently Asked Questions
Sponsor/Leader talking points and presentations
Recurring Communication Design
The Project Director and OCM team leader, if applicable, should identify recurring
communication needs and use branded templates to provide consistency of messaging across all
stakeholder groups. Unfounded rumors can negatively impact many well-conceived projects.
Project leadership must determine the information that they will gather and disseminate on a
regular basis. This information sharing can include weekly status reports, processes for reporting
risks, processes for obtaining answers to questions and issues vendor/contract processes, reports,
etc.
The recurring communications identified for [Project Name] are described below and
documented in the Communication Matrix (Appendix A).

Project Steering Committee Meetings status updates, risks and responses, issues and
resolution, budget updates, etc. To be held bi-weekly throughout the life of the project.
Project Leader Team Meetings status updates, schedule slippage, new risks and
responses, issues, etc. To be held weekly throughout the life of the project.
Project All-Hands Meetings high-level project reviews, issues, sponsor messages. To
be held monthly throughout the life of the project.
[Project Name] News stakeholder updates, schedule updates, progress report,
frequently asked questions, etc. Published via Agency and [Project Name] intranet sites
monthly, then weekly closer to implementation.

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]
Triggered Communication Design
Though not all communication needs can be identified at the beginning of a project, there are
some trigger events that can be anticipated. For instance, moving from development into pilot
can be classified as a trigger event. The Project Director or OCM team lead can build the
communication framework for anticipated triggered events, leaving blanks for detailed data, so
that when a pilot date is set, the team needs only fill in the blanks, send the communication
through the appropriate approval process and execute. Early communication of trigger events
helps manage stakeholder expectations.
Other trigger events cannot be anticipated; for example, there may be an unavoidable delay in
go live or a risk is suddenly uncovered and needs a response. These unanticipated trigger
events can add delay to a project schedule, increase resistance or mistrust among the stakeholder
population or ruin the reputation of the system solution. As much as possible, solid response
plans should be in place for these types of events.
The Project Director or OCM team lead will document all anticipated trigger events for [Project
Name] and build appropriate shell communications to deliver agreed-upon messaging about the
trigger event. Similarly, the Project Director or OCM team lead will create the processes
necessary to quickly execute responses to unanticipated trigger events. Being prepared in this
way can prevent project delay or reputational damage caused by a delayed response or lack of
response. Known trigger events are documented in the Communications Matrix with processes
to handle non-anticipated trigger events documented in the Communications Standards.

DEVELOP COMMUNICATIONS
In this step, the Project Director or OCM team lead creates the Communication Standards that
will be used for all project communications. Generally these standards include: Project logo,
presentation/documentation templates, document management guidelines, file naming
conventions, etc. The standards may also include a process for requesting communications
creation and/or delivery and a communication review and approval process. The Project
Director or OCM team lead completes the rough outline of the communication needed in every
phase of the Project and populate the Communication Matrix (Appendix A). The contents of this
matrix then become tasks within the overall Project Schedule.
The [Project Name] projects Communication Objectives are:
To promote awareness of and excitement for the [Project Name] project
To ensure adoption of the responsibilities and actions assigned to each role
Reduce negative effects of rumors and/or misinformation about the project in the
stakeholder populations
Increase stakeholder population participation in the project

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To ensure smooth information flow within the project team itself, the following SharePoint site
has been created as the projects document management software. In addition, the project will
adhere to the Communication Standards documented below.
In the SharePoint site, project team members can access presentations, the Project Charter, the
Project Management Plan and other project-related documentation to inform their work.
[Add SHAREPOINT SITE LINK]
A [Project Name] intranet site has been created for all stakeholders and is easily accessed from
the Agencys intranet home page. It will contain the following:
Introduction to the project
Project team directory
Frequently asked questions
Glossary
Future-state business process flows
[Project Name] monthly newsletter
As stakeholder communication needs grow other items will be added to the page
(implementation schedule, conversion instructions, etc.).
[Add [Project Name] INTRANET SITE LINK]

COMMUNICATION STANDARDS
Communication Standards for the project should be created during the Initiation or Planning
Phases of a project. The standards generally include templates, logos, intranet/project team site
development, processes and forms for project team leadership or team members to use to
communicate messaging needs to the Project Director or OCM team lead, etc. These standards
are documented and available through the [Project Name] intranet site.
Approved Templates
The PSC and Project Leadership have approved the following set of templates and other artifacts
for [Project Name] stakeholder communications:
[Project Name] logo
[Project Name] email signature
[Project Name] MS Word Document template
[Project Name] MS PowerPoint Slide design template
[Project Name] SharePoint site: [SITE URL]
[Project Name] Share Drive and file naming conventions
[Project Name] Intranet Site (internal to project team): [Add SITE URL]
[Project Name] Intranet Site (external stakeholders): [Add SITE URL]
Communications Approval Process
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The following communications approval process has been approved by project leadership and is
also documented in the Communications Standards document.
1. Project Team member identifies needed message, target audience, preferred delivery
method and timing.
2. Project Team member completes Communication Request Form (in Communicators
Guide).
3. Project Team member forwards completed Communication Request Form to OCM team
leader via [Project Name] COMMUNICATIONS INBOX: [EMAIL LINK HERE].
4. OCM team leader assigns editor and validates message, audience, delivery method and
timing.
5. Once message is completed and prepared for delivery, OCM team leader presents draft
communication to Project Director, other project team leaders, and/or the PSC for
approval.
6. Project Leadership approves publication.
7. OCM team leader publishes, sends or arranges for delivery of communication.
All of these items, in addition to more specific instructions for their use, can be found under the
Communications folder on the [Project Name] SharePoint site.
Approved Delivery Vehicles
Every Agency has its own communication vehicles, norms and guidelines. A delivery vehicle is
simply the medium through which communication is delivered (newsletter, email, web-based
training, focus group, town hall, etc.). There are numerous delivery vehicles available and each
has its purpose, advantages and disadvantages. A list of delivery vehicles, in what situations to
consider using them, their benefits and disadvantages is provided in the Delivery Vehicles chart
(Appendix B). It is up to the Project Director and others on the project leadership team to
determine which delivery vehicles the project will use. The OCM team leader or Project
Director will work with the Agency communications personnel, if applicable, to assess all
available vehicles and to create guidelines for how the Agency can handle project
communication most effectively.
[Project Name] anticipates using several delivery vehicles for effective communication. Below
is a list of the delivery vehicles this project will employ to educate, inform and solicit input from
stakeholders.

Conference calls using a bridge line and NetMeeting for requirements elicitation, team
updates, testing planning, etc. where not all essential participants are centrally located
Emails from the [Project Name] mail box to make general announcements and to solicit
just-in-time feedback, receive and answer questions from stakeholders
Electronic collateral will include on-line how to pdf files, Frequently Asked Questions
and Answers, toolkits, newsletters, certificates, links to web-based training, etc. These
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[Project Name]
will be accessible via the [Project Name] intranet site as well as the Agency intranet
site(s) as applicable.
Multi-media products to include videos, animation, podcasts, web-based training, training
environment, UAT environment, demo environment
Events including [Project Name] Sandbox exercises, Kick-off events in large geographic
offices as rollout progresses, executive/leadership presentations during road shows or
town halls, lessons learned sessions

EVALUATE COMMUNICATIONS
This last step in developing the Communication Management Plan should include a method of
evaluating whether or not project communications are working; whether or not the target
audience is responding to the messages. In general messages can be used to:
Change thinking or beliefs
Encourage the recipient to take an action
Influence feelings or behavior
This is why it is important, especially for new system implementations, to measure how the
messages are changing behavior or increasing awareness.
All communications should be two-way, giving the target audience an opportunity to respond.
Candid feedback from the target audience is critical to successfully revise communication
delivery vehicles, messages or senders to more effectively meet stakeholder needs.
As noted in the Communications Matrix, regular, candid feedback from the target audience and
Agency leadership is critical to successfully executing the overall Communication Management
Plan. Therefore, the following evaluation plan was developed to measure the value of the
projects communication efforts. The project will use three methods to extract feedback from
target audience members receiving communications in order to measure and evaluate the
effectiveness of the communications.
1. Real-time Agency leadership, Project Steering Committee (PSC), SME feedback
2. Formal surveys/evaluations to the target audience members
3. Quick Pulse survey to obtain feedback from target audience members immediately after a
communication is released

GUIDELINES FOR MEETINGS

Included in this template is a resource to help project team members conduct and participate in
project meetings (Appendix C).

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[Project Name]

PROJECT TEAM DIRECTORY

If possible, it is always preferable to tie Project Team directories to the email system at the
organization so that information is continually up-to-date as changes are made via the alreadyexisting email system administration function. It is especially helpful if the Project Team
Directory is available, via a link, on the Project Team intranet site. A directory is critical to a
comprehensive communications strategy. One that is automatically updated and can be accessed
electronically is preferable to a paper copy.

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[Project Name]

ACCEPTANCE
(This section should be modified for best application to specific projects. Include all project team
members that should have some level of authority regarding document review and approval.)
Approved by:
___________________________________________
<Approvers Name>
[Project Name] Executive Sponsor

Date:____________________

___________________________________________
<Approvers Name>
[Project Name] Business Sponsor

Date:____________________

___________________________________________
<Approvers Name>
[Project Name] Project Director/Manager

Date:____________________

___________________________________________
<Approvers Name>
[Project Name] Stakeholder

Date:____________________

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APPENDIX A (SAMPLE) COMMUNICATION MATRIX

Column Heading Definitions/Descriptions
Communication Deliverable: The communication artifact/message itself
Target Audience: The receivers of the communication
Objective: The reason for delivering the communication
Frequency: Indicates reoccurring or one-time-only communication delivery
Delivery Vehicle: Indicates the method of providing the information
Owner: The originator of the communication content
Effectiveness: Audience perception of the effectiveness of the communication (its content, delivery, clarity, etc.)
[Project Name] Communication Matrix
As of [DATE]
Communication
Deliverable

Audience

Description

Desired Outcome or
Behavior

Delivery
Vehicle

Author

Review and
Approval

Sender/
Facilitator

Timing

Effective-ness (scale of
1-5 with 5 being most
effective)

REOCCURING CURRENT STATE

All Agency
personnel

Information on
Agency metrics,
goals, objectives,
progress toward
goals, project news,
etc.

Leaders share best

practices, settle issues,
identify risks and
responses, improve
processes

Agency
Leadership
Meeting

Commissioner or
Assistant
Commissioner

n/a

Commissioner
or Assistant
Commissioner

BiWeekly

[AGENCY NAME]
News

All Agency
personnel

Information on
Agency metrics,
goals, objectives,
progress toward
goals, project news,
human interest
stories, information
on process changes,
legislative changes,
etc.

Agencys leadership team

provides content; Agency
personnel read news and
stay up-to-date on project
progress; increased
excitement

e-Newsletter
on Agency
website

Agency leaders
(assistants)

Commissioner
or Assistant
Commissioner

Agency
Communicatio
n Leader

Monthly

Agency
Employee
Dialogue

Agency
members

Executive-level
information sharing
sessions on "hot
topics"

Group informed and

involved; incorporates
new regs into daily work;
increases employee
morale

Town Halls
and/or WebEx

Agency
Communication
Leader

Agency
Leaders

Agency
Leaders

Quarterly

Agency legal
team and
Commissioner

Agency
Communicatio
n Leader

As
needed

Agency business
status, updates
and decisions

TRIGGERED CURRENT STATE

Detailed updates on
legislation and
changes in
processes

Agency members follow

revised processes

Alerts in email
and posted on
Agency
Intranet Site
followed by
team
meetings

Agency
Communication
Leader and
regulation SME

Legislative
Updates

Agency
members

Project Steering
Committee
Meetings

PSC
members,
PD,
Executive
Sponsor,
Business
Sponsor

Executive-level
leadership meeting
to share status, seek
answers or help

Challenge status, provide

resources, offer decisions,
remove barriers

PSC
meetings;
sometimes
pre-read
documents

PD

Exec Sponsor

PD

BiWeekly

Project Team
Leader Meetings

Project
leads, PD

Team leads share

status, challenges,
concerns, obstacles,
etc.

Team seeks solution to

problems, issues

Project
Leader Team
Meetings;
reports

PD

n/a

PD

Weekly

REOCCURING PROJECT

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[Project Name] Communication Matrix
As of [DATE]
Communication
Deliverable

Audience

Project All-Hands
Meetings

All project
team
members

Status updates,
celebrate progress,
discuss next steps,
review upcoming
changes

[PROJECT
NAME] News

All project
team
members
and nonproject
stakeholders

Project status,
system benefits,
human interest
stories, etc.

Description

Desired Outcome or
Behavior

Delivery
Vehicle

Author

Review and
Approval

Sender/
Facilitator

Team members take

responsibility to maintain
or increase progress
toward milestone goals

Project AllHands
Meetings;
status reports;
celebratory
certificates

PD or OCM team
lead

Project team
leads

PD

Quarterly

Project team provides

content; non-project
stakeholders read news
and stay up-to-date on
project progress;
increased excitement

e-Newsletter
on Project
and Agency
websites

PD or OCM team
lead

Exec Sponsor
or proxy

Project and/or
Agency
webmaster

Monthly

Timing

TRIGGERED PROJECT

Project Milestone
Met

All project
team
members

Milestone
description;
congratulatory
content;
implications/impacts;
next steps

Two-week plan to
pilot go live

Project
team
members
supporting
pilot go
live; pilot
stakeholders;
PSC

Instructions, timing,
logistics of all prepilot activities

PD and appropriate team

lead/PM provide content;
project team members
energized by success or
organized for risk
response

PowerPoint
deck; talking
points

PD or OCM team
lead

PD, Exec
Sponsor or
proxy

PD, Exec
Sponsor or
proxy

date
anticipat
ed from
project
schedule

Pre-pilot tasks completed

Pre-Pilot
Instruction
Manual(s)

PD or OCM team
lead

PD, Exec
Sponsor or
proxy, pilot
site leader

PD, Pilot site

leader

date
anticipat
ed from
project
schedule

17

Effective-ness (scale of
1-5 with 5 being most
effective)

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

APPENDIX B DELIVERY VEHICLES & MEDIA

There may be many options as to what types of vehicles and media can be used to deliver the
messages. Listed below are some suggestions that can also be used to create the communication
matrix.
Delivery
Vehicle/Media
Meeting & Conference
Materials
Speeches
Road Shows

Advantages

Disadvantages

Brands messaging to large audience;

advertising
Shows support for initiative if delivered by
Sponsor or respected Influencer; can
motivate/inspire
Offers non-project team stakeholders the
opportunity to see something tangible rather
than just read information; reduces anxiety
if done well; best if done in context of a
business process

Employee Forums

Offers the opportunity for employees to

assuage their curiosity with questions;
promotes inclusion in the change and thus
can promote trust

Brochures

Graphics appeal to visual learners; can tell a

story and be more memorable than a large
communication; color and movement in
graphics can create excitement
If searchable and intuitive to use, can help
new users feel more confident

Electronic
manuals/help
Videos

Can be watched on individuals personal

time table; multi-sensory experience
enhances message retention; can provide
motivation and a sense of fun to relieve
anxiety

Audio

Can be listened to on individuals personal

time table; good for travelers who need
quick updates

Newsletters

Consistently delivered updates covering

wide variety of business related, as well as
technology related content; graphics can
cause excitement; if pushed may have
enough readership for message to be
accepted; can be delivered in paper or online
18

Paper-based and easily discarded

Temporary high; if not delivered by
respected individual, can fall flat and be
counter-productive
Can be expensive, technically
challenging, risk of instability if script not
thoroughly tested prior to implementation;
could make the change about the system
rather than a change in business process
with the system as a tool
If not well facilitated, the forum could
become a gripe session; all
questions/comments cannot be scripted
nor anticipated; risk of creating, rather
than decreasing, anxiety and erode trust
Paper-based and easily discarded;
graphics or messages can become
confused if not concise enough
If not written within context of the job
end users are trying to do, is less than
helpful; avoid overly-technical language
Can be expensive to produce a quality
product; some end users might not be
capable of watching videos on-line and
producing DVDs can be time consuming;
professional graphics, music and concise
messaging are critical for the message to
be retained
Can be expensive to produce a quality
product; some end users might not be
capable of listening to audio files on-line
and producing CDs can be time
consuming; voice-over talent can be
expensive; future direction is to deliver
via ipod
If not already consistently delivered, may
not get noticed; should not be the only
delivery vehicle for messages

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]
Delivery
Vehicle/Media
Fact Sheets

Frequently Asked
Questions

Signs/Posters

Facilitated Group
Meetings

Brown Bag Lunches

Project Team Intranet

Site

Stakeholder Intranet
Site

Advantages

Disadvantages

Appeals to those who need more rather than

less information; can be delivered via paper
or on-line

Sometimes difficult to gather timely,

correct facts; must be continually
updated; if in paper, facts can become
obsolete quickly, leading to false
information out in the field
If published in paper, quickly obsolete,
leading to outdated information out in the
field; if questions are not answered in a
timely fashion, can erode trust in the
project and cause anxiety

Way to proactively answer questions that

can be anticipated; non-threatening way for
any stakeholder to ask a question and have
it answered without repercussion; answers
can reach entire stakeholder population;
project team can use the questions to
determine topics about which the end users
might be anxious
Excellent, inexpensive, constant reminders
that the change is coming; can be
motivating; picture can evoke emotion and
tie current project to overall strategy
Promotes inclusion and ownership among
stakeholders; allows discussion of sensitive
issues in a safe environment; promotes
decision-making and action planning;
promotes understanding of all stakeholders
perspectives
Often used as learning sessions, creates an
atmosphere in which individuals generally
offer more comments, questions due to its
informality; quick; stakeholders can feel
that the session is a productive use of their
time since they eat as well (multi-tasking);
can promote inclusion and motivation
Promotes open, documentable
communication among project team
members; large announcements can be
distributed real-time; depending on content,
can be motivational and promote high
performance team behaviors; content does
not have to become obsolete
Perfect for sending change messages,
project status, calls for participation, lessons
learned, frequently asked questions, benefits
achieved, problems resolved, etc.

19

Though relatively inexpensive, excellent

graphics/photos can add costs; all
stakeholders may not be in a workplace
with walls upon which to hang signs
If not facilitated tightly by an impartial,
objective, trained facilitator, can devolve
into conflict and/or non-action; can waste
time and damage the reputation of the
project
Should be single-subject targeted as it can
be frustrating for stakeholders to try and
tackle too many subjects while trying to
eat; provide a facilitator/leader to get
things started; can devolve into fun
lunch and accomplish nothing but a
good, collegial feeling with no resulting
action items or evaluation of the
effectiveness of the learning
If not kept up-to-date, becomes a liability;
cannot force the project team members to
review the site frequently

If not kept up-to-date, becomes a liability;

cannot force the project team members to
review the site frequently

Communication Management Plan

[Project Name]

APPENDIX C - GUIDELINES FOR MEETINGS

Meeting Agenda
Meeting Agenda will be distributed at least 1 business day in advance of the meeting. The
Agenda should identify the presenter for each topic along with a time limit for that topic. The
first item in the agenda should be a review of action items from the previous meeting.
Meeting Minutes
Meeting minutes/notes will be distributed within 2 business days following the meeting.
Meeting minutes/notes will include the status of all items from the agenda along with new action
items and the Parking Lot list.
Action Items
Action Items are recorded in both the meeting agenda and minutes. Action items will include
both the action item along with the owner of the action item. Meetings will start with a review of
the status of all action items from previous meetings and end with a review of all new action
items resulting from the meeting. The review of the new action items will include identifying the
owner for each action item.
Meeting Chair Person
The Chair Person is responsible for distributing the meeting agenda, facilitating the meeting and
distributing the meeting minutes. The Chair Person will ensure that the meeting starts and ends
on time and that all presenters adhere to their allocated time frames.
Note Taker
The Note Taker is responsible for documenting the status of all meeting items, maintaining a
Parking Lot item list and taking notes of anything else of importance during the meeting. The
Note Taker will give a copy of their notes to the Chair Person at the end of the meeting as the
Chair Person will use the notes to create the Meeting Minutes.
Time Keeper
The Time Keeper is responsible for helping the facilitator adhere to the time limits set in the
meeting agenda. The Time Keeper will let the presenter know when they are approaching the
end of their allocated time. Typically a quick hand signal to the presenter indicating how many
minutes remain for the topic is sufficient.
Parking Lot
The Parking Lot is a tool used by the facilitator to record and defer items which arent on the
meeting agenda; however, merit further discussion at a later time or through another forum.
A parking lot record should identify an owner for the item as that person will be responsible for
ensuring follow-up. The Parking Lot list should be included in the meeting minutes.

20