Team Communication

When I first viewed the e-mail message, my reaction was that it was polite but impersonal. If a project manager sent this to me, and I was already feeling overworked, then it would be easy to put it off until I had the time to address it. Listening to the phone message was a little more personal, but again it would allow me to ignore it until I was able to work on the project. Hearing that human voice though was more meaningful to me than an e-mail message. The video was the most personal and the least impersonal. The eye contact and tone of voice of the speaker showed how important it was to the speaker for me to send my report to her.

The factors that influenced how I perceived the message were my own experience with these forms of communication and the tone of voice and body language. “Effective communication is influenced by spirit and attitude, tonality and body language, timing, and the personality of the recipient” (Stolovich, 2010). None of these things were present in the e-mail, only tonality and timing with the phone message, but all these were present in the video message. In my own work experience I have been the sender and the recipient of these communication methods. This experience has definitely influenced my opinions of these methods.

In my own experience with communicating at work, there are communication methods that work better than others. The ones I have found to be the most effective have been the times where an actual physical visit was made. It’s so easy to ignore or put off an e-mail and postpone a phone message, but a physical visit is very difficult to ignore. I am the elections chairperson for our local teacher’s union. Last week was insane for me, and I put off the e-mail requests from our president to set up a timeline for the next election. When he stopped my in the hallway the next day and asked me to complete it, I could no longer put off the request. That physical request was powerful because I was able to see the need to complete the task in his tone, his body language, and eye contact. After viewing the video this week, I realized that the message was important to the speaker and needed to be completed right away. That urgency was not communicated as well through the e-mail and voice message. Physical contact is everything.

As a future project manager, I realize that working with stakeholders and team members in a way that is as personal as possible will make the difference for the success of my project. If I am assembling a team and am requiring them to adhere to a deadline, then the most effective method for keeping that team on track will be personal. Regular meetings and physical reminders will make all the difference for a positive outcome in my project. “Project teams should have the opportunity to meet periodically to reaffirm the project’s focus and keep abreast of activities within and outside the project that affect their work and the project’s ultimate success” (Portny, 2008). It is so important to make sure that communication is present in every aspect of a project, and even if it’s an e-mail or a phone message steps should be taken to ensure that it’s personal enough and that the recipient understands the importance of responding and staying on track with the project. Communication is key, and no matter what form it comes in, it’s power will make or break a project.

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.

Stolovich, D. (2010): Communicating with stakeholders [video]. Laureate Education, Inc.