Information Dissemination

Learn the best practices for sharing project information.

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Course: On-Demand

(soft upbeat music) Effective communication can be the difference between a successful project and project failure. We have discussed various tools and techniques for project communication and where they can be applied. Now, let's look at specific communication skills and styles to help you be an effective communicator, and potential roadblocks to avoid. Some of the most common skills that project managers and managers in general use to communicate with their teams in an effective manner are active listening. This may be the most important skill in communicating with others. It's important that when listening, you're not already thinking about what to say next. Listen fully to others, confirm your understanding of what you heard by feeding it back to them. Then, take a moment to formulate a response, then respond. Inquiry. Asking the right questions to bring you clarity on what others are saying will improve your communication. There are several ways to inquire, so use your best judgment on how and what to ask. Teach. Educate your team to increase their knowledge about an applicable subject. This will make them more effective. Seek the facts. Always seek out facts to confirm or support information. Lay this responsibility on your project team as well. Expectations. It's important to manage expectations, because by doing so, your team knows exactly what's going on and what will happen in the future. And resolution. Conflict has a way of spreading rapidly. If two people on a project team are in conflict and if the conflict is not dealt with, it's only a matter of time before it spreads to others on the team. Use conflict resolution skills to ensure the disruption is resolved as soon as possible to avoid further disruption. There are several formal communication styles which can affect how your communication is received. Consider which of these to use at different times for different reasons. Authoritarian sets expectations and give specific guidance. Promotional cultivates spirit, team building, and development. Facilitating gives guidance when required, but, ultimately, does not interfere. Conciliatory is agreeable, but persists in building a compatible team. Judicial uses fair, sound judgment to mediate. Ethical is honest, fair, and by the book. Secretive is closed-off, not open or outgoing. Disruptive works to break up collaborations and unity. Intimidating lowers morale with a tough attitude. Combative is disagreeable and desires disputes. Roadblocks are things that can get in the way of having an effective dialogue with someone. It's best to be aware that you're not engaging in any of these. Hearing what you wanna hear as the receiver, rather than what's being communicated. This occurs often when people have been doing the same job for so long that they stop listening to what is being said to them. Sender and receiver having a different perception of the same thing. Consider that in contract negotiations, this type of roadblock could be devastating to your project, and you may not even know about it until it occurs. Receiver judging the sender before accepting the communication. In some cases, this is a good thing. Each time we instruct children not to speak to strangers, we're making a case for this. But doing this with people you work with can be counterproductive. Receiver disregards conflicting information and does what they want. Always be open to feedback, and if you don't agree with it, discuss it so that you and the sender have a mutual understanding of the communication. Words have more than one meaning. Be especially cautious of this when communicating with someone who has a different native language than you. The same words can have different meanings to people. Discuss differences and clarify immediately if you're not sure you understand someone's use of a word or phrase. And ignoring non-verbal communication. When face to face, we use our whole body to communicate. You should be looking for non-verbal communication from the other senders and be aware of your own non-verbal communication. If someone is uncomfortable or upset, they may never say it verbally, but it may show in their body language or facial expressions.

Intermediate Provider : Danny Howell 6 Lessons · 21m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Urdu, Chinese

Course Description

Distributing information is the process of making project-relevant information available to project stakeholders and others involved in the project. This process occurs throughout the entire lifecycle of the project from the moment the project manager is assigned to the project to the final report and lessons learned dissemination. In this Project Management: Information Dissemination course, we’ll discuss ways to distribute information, documentation, and project status reports. Most information distribution will occur during the execution phase of the project while implementing the communications management plan, or if other information requests arise. Effective project communication can be the difference between a successful project and project failure. We’ll look at specific communication skills and styles to help you be an effective communicator, and potential roadblocks to avoid. You will also understand how to manage meetings and documentation outputs such as stakeholder notifications, project reports, recordkeeping, and feedback. The knowledge you gain from this course will help you create effective reports, facilitate productive meetings, and communicate well with your team.

What You'll Learn

Apply communication skills to identify and avoid roadblocks
Identify and distinguish between different communication styles
Compare and contrast methods of information dissemination
Organize and manage successful project meetings
Compose a project status report
Manage documentation outputs such as stakeholder notifications, project reports, recordkeeping, and feedback

Key Takeaways

Distributing information is the process of making project-relevant information available to project stakeholders and others involved in the project.
Information dissemination occurs throughout the entire project lifecycle, from the moment the project manager is assigned to the project to the final report and lessons learned dissemination.
Most information distribution occurs during the execution phase while implementing the communications management plan or when other information requests arise.
Effective project communication can be the difference between a successful project and project failure.
The knowledge gained helps you create effective reports, facilitate productive meetings, and communicate well with your team.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does this course cover?

This Project Management: Information Dissemination course discusses ways to distribute information, documentation, and project status reports. It covers communication skills and styles, potential roadblocks to avoid, managing meetings, and documentation outputs such as stakeholder notifications, project reports, recordkeeping, and feedback.

What skills will I gain from this course?

The course builds skills in dissemination, implementing projects, information management, information sharing, project communications, and project implementation.

What topics are included in the lessons?

The lessons cover Communication Skills, Styles, and Roadblocks; Ways to Distribute Information; Meeting Management; Documentation Outputs; Project Status Report; and a Test Your Knowledge assessment.

Why is information dissemination important in project management?

Distributing information makes project-relevant information available to stakeholders throughout the entire project lifecycle, and effective project communication can be the difference between a successful project and project failure.

Professional Certifications and Continuing Education Units (CEUs)

Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM®)

Professional Development Credits (PDCs): 0.5

Certification Program Categories:

Leadership & NavigationBusiness AcumenConsultationGlobal MindsetEthical PracticeRelationship ManagementAnalytical AptitudeCommunicationDiversity, Equity & Inclusion

KnowledgeCity is approved by SHRM as a Recertification General Provider to offer SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP professional development credits (PDCs). By taking the courses approved by SHRM, KnowledgeCity can award SHRM Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for HR knowledge and competency programs related to the SHRM Body of Applied Skills and Knowledge™ (the SHRM BASK™).