BY: MATHEWS C. OMULECHI AND WANJOHI M. ANTHONY
Abstract: The main objective of this paper is to examine the impact of effective communication in project management. While some researchers may have considered communication as a mere success factor in project management, others have identified it as an important skill and a required competency in project management. It appears that there is a need to establish empirical evidence on how communication impacts project performance and management. The study forms a basis in further development on how and to what extent communication tools should be used as a means of project communication, and what the impact would be.
KEYWORDS: Communication, Project communication, Effective communication on project management
INTRODUCTION
Effective communication is one of the main determinants of successful project realization (Čulo & Scendrović, 2010). It is the lifeblood of any human relations and thus constitute the basis of successful cooperation and joint realization of tasks (Rajkumar, 2010). Zulch (2014), proves that effective communication is a foundation function that supports and integrates all other project areas. According to Muszyńska (2018), it is essential to determine how communication is effective and establish ways of measuring effectiveness. Generally speaking communication is effective when it reaches its goals and accomplishes the intended purpose. In order to measure effectiveness, there is a need for more specific and detailed aspects characterizing effectiveness of the communication process.
IMPACTS OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION ON PROJECT MANAGEMENT
According to Goudar (2010) on effective project communication management, communication is the glue that holds a project team together. It is not just talking, it is also listening. With clearly defined and traceable structures parties are able to understand each other and accountability for each information passed is easily achieved (Mwangi, 2019). In the case of a virtual team, poor communication will render an already challenging situation nearly impossible to control.
The goal of Project Communications Management according to Goudar (2010) is to ensure timely and appropriate collection, storage, distribution and generation of project information. Every project should include a communication management plan which guide project communications. This plan should be part of the overall project plan. Effective and successful coordination of activities in each phase of project development does not involve the services of the top or the most skilled, but also a collaboration of a whole team (Nyaseda, 2016). This leads to improved quality of work since team members easily communicate and work together towards a common goal. The type of communication will vary with the needs of the project.
To achieve desired project performance project managers have to maintain communication quality throughout the project. Not following the correct communication paths may lead to problems such as, technical connectivity issues and insufficient knowledge transfer (Reed, Knight, 2010). Previous researchers defined communication quality as the degree of accuracy, clarity ,detail, relevance, and timeliness (Afroze, Khan, 2017) . International Project Management Association [IPMA], states that communication should be useful, timely and clear showing that there is significant need for maintaining communication quality on projects to improve project team performance. This helps promote integrity among team members and helps in identifying irregularities.
Frequency of communication in current research is defined as the degree of contact between key project members through certain communication media. Turner and Müller (2004), classified communication frequency as daily, weekly, bi-weekly or monthly basis contact through use of certain media and providing reports at certain project phases or at milestone completion. If projects are not well documented and recorded, there could be cause of many frictions where information may not get to the targeted parties or may leave no way for backtracking for accountability (Mwangi, 2019). Frequency of communication also enhances the project team’s speed since it encourages them to beat deadlines and complete assignments on time. Communication frequency has then been identified as an effective communication practice.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, one the goals of effective communication is to improve the generation of project information. This leads to accuracy among the project teams therefore increasing the probability of the project’s success. It is also determined that frequency in communication improves team coordination of activities thereby enhancing speed of work and promoting accountability within project teams.
HOW TO CITE: Omulechi C. M & Wanjohi M. Anthony. (2026). Impacts of effective communication on project management. KENPRO Publishers.
REFERENCES
Afroze, G., & Khan, R. A. (2017, September). Investigating Impact of Effective Communication Practices and Project Complexity on Performance of International Development Projects. In 2017 9th IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Data Acquisition and Advanced Computing Systems: Technology and Applications (IDAACS) (Vol. 1, pp. 387-393). IEEE.
Frank Anthony Maina Mwangi. (2019). An Investigation into the Impact of Communication and Information Management on Project Performance in the Kenyan Construction Industry.
Goudar, J. (2010). Effective Project Communication Management. The Project Perfect White Paper Collection.
Muszyńska, K. (2018). A Concept for Measuring Effectiveness of Communication in Project Teams. Journal of Economics and Management, 33, 63-79.
Nyaseda, S. L. (2016). Impact of the use of Information and Communication Technology in Construction Projects.
Turner, J. R., & Müller, R. (2004). Communication and Co-operation on Projects between the Project Owner as Principal and the Project Manager as Agent. European Management journal, 22(3), 327-336.