Week 7 Instructor Notes W7N1: Project Communication Overview Approximately 70 (and some say up to 90%) of a project manager’s time is spent communicating and over  50% of their time is spent in meetings.  Of the time spent communicating, approximately 45% of the time should be spent listening and no more than 30% should be spent talking. The following are interesting facts, from Dr. Don Wetmore, regarding communication: ·  The average person uses 13 different ways to control and manage their time · The average person gets 1 interruption every 8 minutes or approximately 7 an hour or 50-60 per day · On an average day, there are 17 million meetings in America · The average worker sends and receives 190 messages per day · There will be 2 million marriages in this country this year and 1 million divorces.  95% of divorces are caused by a “lack of communication”. · The average working person spends less than 2 minutes per day in meaningful communication with their spouse or “significant other”. · The average working person spends less than 30 seconds a day in meaningful communication with their children. Communication is important – in both our professional and personal lives! W7N2 How People Communicate Project managers need to be able to communicate precise messages, where the receiving party understands the context, motive and message itself.  A basic communication model helps in understanding what communication means.  Communication is two-way – we transmit information for the purpose of it being received and understood.  Both the sender and receiver are involved in communication!  What we transmit can be affected by “noise”, meaning that the receiver of the message may have a distorted message – they may be receiving something different than what we think we sent.  That might be caused by the way we are sending or by the way they are listening.  To avoid misunderstandings, we need to confirm that our message was understood accurately.  Noise can be caused by many factors, including language, culture, or emotion.  Noise  can block out a message so the information is either not heard at all or is distorted.  We need to use feedback to verify that our communications are successful. There are various strategies for ensuring that messages are understood  correctly and different strategies are needed for different types of communication channels.   In face-to-face communications we can evaluate tone and voice and use body language in augment our  words.  While you must  be careful to read cues correctly, face-to-face communications generally presents an environment where it is a bit easier to ensure your message is properly received. Consider the following: · Email communication is 100% words (emoticons are marginally non-verbal communication) · Telephone communication is 18% words and 82% voice tone · Face-to-Face communication is 55% body language, 38% voice tone and 7% words Be certain to think about the communication method we use..

1. Week 7 Instructor Notes
W7N1: Project Communication Overview
Approximately 70 (and some say up to 90%) of a project
manager’s time is spent communicating and over 50% of their
time is spent in meetings. Of the time spent communicating,
approximately 45% of the time should be spent listening and no
more than 30% should be spent talking.
The following are interesting facts, from Dr. Don Wetmore,
regarding communication:
· The average person uses 13 different ways to control and
manage their time
· The average person gets 1 interruption every 8 minutes or
approximately 7 an hour or 50-60 per day
· On an average day, there are 17 million meetings in America
· The average worker sends and receives 190 messages per day
· There will be 2 million marriages in this country this year and
1 million divorces. 95% of divorces are caused by a “lack of
communication”.
· The average working person spends less than 2 minutes per
day in meaningful communication with their spouse or
“significant other”.
· The average working person spends less than 30 seconds a day
in meaningful communication with their children.
Communication is important – in both our professional and
personal lives!
W7N2 How People Communicate

2. Project managers need to be able to communicate precise
messages, where the receiving party understands the context,
motive and message itself. A basic communication model helps
in understanding what communication means.
Communication is two-way – we transmit information for the
purpose of it being received and understood. Both the sender
and receiver are involved in communication! What we transmit
can be affected by “noise”, meaning that the receiver of the
message may have a distorted message – they may be receiving
something different than what we think we sent. That might be
caused by the way we are sending or by the way they are
listening. To avoid misunderstandings, we need to confirm that
our message was understood accurately. Noise can be caused
by many factors, including language, culture, or emotion. Noise
can block out a message so the information is either not heard
at all or is distorted. We need to use feedback to verify that our
communications are successful.
There are various strategies for ensuring that messages are
understood correctly and different strategies are needed for
different types of communication channels. In face-to-face
communications we can evaluate tone and voice and use body
language in augment our words. While you must be careful to
read cues correctly, face-to-face communications generally
presents an environment where it is a bit easier to ensure your
message is properly received. Consider the following:
· Email communication is 100% words (emoticons are
marginally non-verbal communication)
· Telephone communication is 18% words and 82% voice tone
· Face-to-Face communication is 55% body language, 38%
voice tone and 7% words
Be certain to think about the communication method we use.
Some communication is fine by email, but some requires more

3. synchronous communication. Would you want to negotiate
additional resources to avoid schedule overrun with your senior
stakeholders only by email or would a meeting be more
effective? The communication plan for the project should
consider how to present all planned communication. Consider
the following when determining communication channels on a
project:
For more effective communication:
· Plan properly to design and implement communication
strategies
· Use feedback to ensure the accuracy of the message
· Pay attention to the nonverbal elements of communication
· Recognize the role of perception in gaining understanding and
try to overcome perceptual differences both as a speaker and a
listener
Make sure you spend time listening rather than talking! Make
yourself aware of issues and concerns by listening to your team
and your stakeholders. Avoid communication blockers like idea
killers, negative positioning, and dismissing ideas because “it’s
been tried before”. Let people talk and hear what they have to
share. This not only helps build up your team, but you will
gain important information. Even if you choose not to address
someone’s concern at the moment you become aware of it and
take corrective action if it becomes necessary.Listening entails
much more than just hearing. A good listener not only listens
to what is being said, but also to what is left unsaid or only
partially said. This requires observing body language and
noticing inconsistencies between verbal and non-verbal
messages.
The following are 10 principles of listening that are helpful in
our personal as well as professional lives:
1 Stop talking. If you are talking you are not listening! Do not
interrupt, talk over or finish sentences. When the other person
has finished, it is helpful to clarity and ensure you received the

4. message accurately.
2 Prepare to Listen. Relax and focus on the speaker. Don’t
spend your listening time thinking about what you are going to
say next. Don’t be distracted by other thoughts. Concentrate
on the messages that are being communicated.
3 Put the speaker at ease. Help the speaker feel free to speak.
Use nov-verbal cues such as nodding or gestures to encourage
them to continue. Maintain eye contact without staring. Show
you are listening and understand what is being said.
4 Remove distractions. Focus on the conversation. Don’t
doodle, stare off, drum your fingers or perform other
distractions. Avoid interruptions and don’t answer your phone
or check your phone. Distractions disrupt listening and convey
the message that you are bored.
5 Empathize. Try to understand the speaker’s point of view.
Look at issues from their perspective and avoid preconceived
ideas. You can empathize with the speaker much more if you
have an open mind. If you disagree with what the speaker is
saying wait to construct your counter argument. Keep an open
mind while the speaker is speaking.
6 Be patient. A pause doesn’t necessarily mean the speaker has
finished. Let the speaker continue at their pace. They may
need more time to think or formulate what they want to say.
Never interrupt!
7 Be impartial. Don’t become irritated or let the person’s habits
or mannerisms distract you from their message. Avoid personal
prejudice. Everyone has a different way of speaking – whether
shyly, nervously, with accent, with excessive body language or
aggressively. Focus on what is being said and try to ignore the
delivery style.
8 Listen to the tone of the message. A good speaker will use
both volume and tone to keep an audience attentive. Everyone
uses different pitch, tone and voice volume in different types of
situations. Use these cues to help you understand the emphasis
of what is being said.
9 Listen for ideas and not just words. Try to get the whole

5. picture. You need to link pieces of information together to
understand someone else’s ideas. Some people are better at
presenting the links, but with proper concentration and focusing
you can have a better view of the whole picture.
10 Watch for non-verbal communication cues. Gestures, facial
expressions and eye movements can provide additional
information to verbal communication.
W7N4: Handling Difficult Communications
A project manager is often called to handle both difficult
situations and difficult people. These conversations require
skill and empathy and frankly, often takes courage to face the
problem and deal with it. Not dealing with problems when they
occur, however, is a bad habit and leads to a lot more issues
than handling issues and problems promptly and directly. The
following are some tips when dealing with these types of
situations:
· Clearly state the issue. You need to clearly understand what
behavior is causing the problem and the effect that behavior is
having on your team. You need to be clear about the issue to
the point where you can clearly articulate it. Lack of focus on
the central issue derails conversations about the issue.
· Know your objective. Know what you want to accomplish –
the desired outcome—before you address the issue. Know what
is negotiable and what is non-negotiable. Have a clear end
game in mind.
· Be open minded in your analysis. Spend time before
addressing the issue directly by thinking about your attitude
toward the situation and the people involved. Be open to hear
what each person involved has to say before closing your mind
to alternatives. Seek a greater truth before defining an end
solution.
· Manage emotions. Emotions will not be left at the door, but
your responsibility as a leader is to understand the emotions and

6. manage them during discussions. What starts out as a small
annoyance can escalate to rage if not controlled. Always be
mindful of preserving people’s dignity and of treating all
involved with respect – even when we disagree with them.
Acknowledge emotions – don’t try to pretend they do not exist.
· Allow for silence. Don’t rush to fill in silence with words.
Pauses can be valuable by letting messages sink in. A pause
can be calming. Filling in the pauses gives the impression you
are overbearing.
· Preserve the relationship. Limit collateral damage to
relationships. Try to find solutions that solve the problem
without building walls and creating division.
· Be consistent. Make sure your objective is fair and your
approach is consistent. Don’t show favoritism or treat team
members unequally. Aim for consistency in approach so people
don’t have to second guess your reaction.
· Develop conflict resolution skills. Understand that some
conflict is good and can lead to positive changes.
· Avoid thwarting ploys. When you encounter sarcasm,
accusing behavior, stonewalling, unresponsiveness, passive
aggressive behavior address it openly and sincerely. Label the
behavior and address it. Don’t use these techniques yourself!
· Choose the right setting. Find neutral meeting ground.
Calling people into your office can shift the balance of power
too much in your direction. A neutral meeting room or coffee
shop may be a better setting.
· Know how to begin. Be direct and upfront. Describe the
problem neutrally and briefly. Seek solutions and engage in
problem solving. Keep your tone of voice exploratory not
inquisition style.