Abbott Project Management Playbook

3.11 C OMMUNICATION P LAN The communication is certainly one of the most important knowledge areas for the Project manager, because it represents around 90% of his time, as he is the link between people, ideas, and information. Most of the problems result from lack of communication, and there is a strong relation between the project development and the project manager ’s ability to manage communication. The project charter can provide an idea of the communication necessary to achieve project success. The best practices for communication are focused on who (person who is responsible for delivering the communication), what (the type of communication), why (the rationale for the communication plan), where (the location where the recipient will find the communication, if specified), when (the time and/or frequency at which the communication is delivered), how (the delivery mechanism that will facilitate the communication), and to whom (the audience or recipients of the communication). 3.12 D ECISION R IGHTS Express the logic about who is authorized to make what types of decisions inside the project, both in terms of everyday effectiveness and the bottom line. Four steps can assist the decision rights: 3.13 A PPROVAL The project charter is formally accepted and approved by the project sponsor and other designated stakeholders. Formal approval acknowledges the completion, review, and acceptance of all the deliverables produced during the initiate stage. Signatures on the project charter document, final approval of the charter, is the go-forward agreement to continue project planning. The applicable team members are usually the project manager, project sponsor, and project stakeholders. A formal approval process encourages the completion and acceptance of the deliverables/results from project Initiation to project charter development. The distribution and review of the project charter to the project sponsor/stakeholders and appropriate team members will provide an opportunity for making any necessary changes before finalizing the project charter deliverables. The project sponsor should indicate the reasons for rejecting the project if the decision is a no-go. If the project is a go, signatures from the project sponsor and any other designated stakeholder must be obtained. • Routinely review and update how decision authority is distributed • Avoid too much centralization and too much democracy • Assign decision rights unequivocally • Don't confuse a particular outcome with the process itself

Useful Links:

Project Charter Template 1 Basic Project Charter Template 2 Detailed

• •

• IT Specific Templates (Business & Technology Services PMO Processes and Templates Library)

23