Communication Is Key
Guest Post by Amy Newton, owner of Amy Newton Public Relations, LLC
Sometimes working on a project can be like building a house of cards. You might think you have put together a strong foundation to keep it standing, but it just takes one little thing to make it fall. For projects, that thing is often poor communication. It’s important to communicate from the very beginning and throughout a project to ensure effective teamwork.
We’ve all been there at some point. Someone thought another team member was taking care of a task, a team member wasn’t clear on what to do, and so on. Whatever the issue, it probably could have been prevented with better communication.
“But wait,” you might be thinking. “I communicated exactly what the project entailed and what was needed.” You may very well have done that and thought that it was crystal clear from your perspective. The key words there are from your perspective. To help prevent any “uh-oh” moments that can cause rushed work, extra work, frustration, delays, or missed deadlines, the following are a few key points to communicate to ensure effective teamwork.
Be Clear on Roles and Responsibilities
Whether you are an independent practitioner or part of a team, you need to know your role and responsibilities as well as those of the others you will be working with or contacting about the project. Who do you need to contact for statistics or background information? Will you or someone else be managing the website? Who will be taking care of designs, marketing, etc.?
Discuss Deliverables
You might be assuming that the graphic designer will take care of X, Y, and Z, but are they expecting you to provide them with A, B, and C to complete their task? Discuss the deliverables for each team member and then discuss what is needed to make sure everyone is clear on what is needed to complete the task.
Check in With Each Other Frequently
While you may have a project manager or project management software with built-in alerts and timelines, nothing beats actually touching base with team members to see where you are and what may still be needed to complete work. Remove obstacles, confusion, stress, and frustration when working on projects by taking time to communicate to ensure effective teamwork.
About the Author
Amy Newton is the owner of Amy Newton Public Relations, LLC, located in Loudoun County Virginia.
