The Art of Effective Communication

     All three of these communications methods are effective.   One thinks it may depend on when and what order they are conveyed.   The project that they are both working on is divided into several parts and when each is completed, each piece will bring a well-organized puzzle to life.  Communication is important in any project. There are two forms of project communications as noted in our reading Communicating and Documenting Project Progress (Portny, p. 357) 

•    Formal Communication – preplanned and conducted in a  

                                                  standard format in accordance

                                                  with an established schedule.

•    Informal communication – Occurs as people think of 

                                                   information they want to share.

All three of these examples are clear and well understood in order to deliver the communication needed to keep all team members updated on the projects.

Email

     Written information cuts down on confusion, mistakes or errors.  It also serves as a reference when needed.

     If the email is sent out first it may seem to be just a request for the report.  However in this case the email seemed more out of frustration and a last minute plea for Jane to get the report she needed from Mark in order to finish her project on time.

Voicemail

      This can be effective as a follow up to either an email or a face to face communication.

      In this example Jane is trying not to be demanding but wants to sound firm in her request.  

Face to Face

     One thinks that face to face is the most effective way of communication as both parties are standing in front of each other communicating verbally.  This can allow for a clearer form of communication as if there is any misunderstanding it can be cleared up at that moment instead of playing either phone or email tag with each other. 

     By Jane coming to Mark’s cubicle, it allows Mark know that this is important and it is an issue that needs to be handled right away.  Jane’s body language also portrayed a firm but not demanding message about needing Mark’s report a.s.a.p. in order to finish her portion of the project.

     The only down fall to voicemail and face to face communication, is that there is no type of paper trail of a conversation to reference by when needed. 

Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J., Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., Sutton, M. M., & Kramer, B. E. (2008). Project management: Planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.