Communication Breakdowns: Making the Most of the Inevitable

Communication Breakdowns

Successful Project Managers develop a roster strategies to preempt the most destructive forms of miscommunication.

As with the healthiest relationships, clear communication is the bedrock of successful projects. Misunderstandings and miscommunication can lead to delays, cost overruns, and, ultimately, project failure. Alas, a certain level of miscommunication is inevitable. The most successful Project Managers quickly develop a roster strategies to preempt the most destructive forms of miscommunication while minimizing the impact of others.

Here's my favorite tactic: keep rigorous documentation! For example, if recurring meetings occur in a virtual medium (e.g. Zoom) ask your team members if they're comfortable having the call recorded, make the recording quickly and easily available afterwards, and generate a transcript that's saved in the same place as the recording, ideally within a well-organized Google Drive folder or comparable cloud-based service. A comprehensive and accessible record of decisions and talking points will make everyone's lives easier.