Internal vs. External Project Communication
Many organizations place a lot of emphasis on communicating with external project stakeholders, and rightly so. They set up formal project communications teams which create detailed communication strategies, plans, and deliverables that go through extensive review and approval processes.
While this type of communication is very important, one must not forget internal project communications—the sharing of information with fellow team members. Internal communication ensures that all the project resources have the correct information, leading to overall alignment in both strategy and tactics.
Any misunderstandings can be detrimental to the success of the project. While good communication reduces risk and enables issues to be addressed quickly, poor communication can significantly increase the overall project risk.
How can we ensure good internal project communication?
The best way is to plan ahead. Why not treat it the same way as communication with external project stakeholders? Create an internal communication strategy and plan. It is essential that communication be both top-down and bottom-up. Success must be monitored on an ongoing basis and delivery methods revised as required.
Considerations for setting up successful project communication
- Set expectations for project teams to share information. If information-sharing becomes the norm, it will be much easier to ensure it continues and is effective. After all, practice makes perfect.
- Create a communications strategy and plan. This doesn’t have to be an extensive document, as short as one PowerPoint slide. The strategy and plan includes the communication objectives, responsible parties and medium, and activities such as the following:
- Regular meetings (e.g. weekly) with the project team, with the objective of sharing information
- Regular update emails (e.g. weekly) with the latest project news
- An online discussion forum where project team members can ask questions and receive answers with searchable results
- A catalogue of all project documentation for easy reference, including a governance process for updating the catalogue and the documentation on an ongoing basis
- A methodology for gathering feedback on the state of communication from team members
The extent of internal communications will vary depending on the size and complexity of a project. Not all of the above components are required for all projects. For smaller projects, the required process may be as basic as one weekly meeting. On the other hand, larger initiatives may require a much more extensive methodology to ensure that all the project team members are connected. Ultimately, as long as internal communications are planned, executed and monitored, the risk of miscommunication and misalignment can be mitigated.

Business Intelligence Road Map to Smarter Decisions
If your organization is having difficulty deriving greater insight, understanding, and intelligence from your data, you are not alone. Data is everywhere. But accessing, organizing, and making sense of it can be daunting.

Power BI vs Tableau – Which is Better?
Although Tableau and Power BI are similar business intelligence tools, there are key differences that organizations should be aware of when considering analytical requirement

6 Essential Data Visualization Best Practices
We have identified 6 Essential Data Visualization Best Practices. Adhering to these best practices makes it easier and faster for users to gain insight from large volumes of data and thereby make the best decisions for their business.

Optimus SBR Named as 2021 Great Place to Work
Optimus SBR has been named as Great Place to Work for a third consecutive year.

Executing on Round 2 of Municipal Modernization Program Reviews in Ontario: Should You Approach Them as a Marathon or a Sprint?
Our overview of areas of focus for the second round of the Municipal Modernization Program, Service Delivery Reviews themes, and advice on how to execute with the funds made available for this investment.

Optimus SBR named to the Growth List for 8th Consecutive Year!
Canadian Business named Optimus SBR on the 32nd annual Growth List!

Adapting in a New Era of Corporate Travel
Travel is one of the most impacted sectors hit this year due to COVID-19. Organizations need to begin to take a critical look at what corporate travel will look like in a post-COVID world.

Optimus SBR Named as 2020 Great Place to Work
For the second consecutive year, Optimus SBR is thrilled and honoured to be named on the 2020 list of Best Workplaces in Professional Services, and as one of this year’s Best Workplaces™ in Canada. This year, we’ve also been named to the inaugural list of Best Workplaces in Ontario.

The Driving Need to Reassess Processes & Controls Related to COVID-19 Responses
COVID-19 has thrust a massive amount of change onto financial institutions. Conducting a review of the processes and controls put in place during these unprecedented times is critical as financial institutions face an increasingly complex risk environment.

Pivoting When the World Changes: Getting the Most Out of Municipal Service Delivery Reviews in the New COVID-19 Reality
Municipal services matter, and not just the ones that people see. The ones that keep things humming behind the scenes matter too. And never has that been more apparent than during the COVID-19 pandemic.

How to Improve Analytics Capabilities and AAIM for Success
With technological advancement rapidly reshaping how we do business, a company’s ability to leverage data to make more informed decisions is the key to staying competitive in today’s market.
Whether your organization is beginning their analytics journey or is further along in its analytics maturity, an objective analytics capabilities assessment focused on using data to make better decisions is an important first step to achieve your analytics goals.

Optimus SBR Named 2022 Most Admired Corporate Cultures™ Winner!
What a thrill it is to be honoured as a 2022 Most Admired Corporate Cultures™ Winner! This award celebrates the Bold Attitude and Entrepreneurial Spirit each of us embodies.