Communication plan
Purpose. Make communication a plan rather than an afterthought, so that stakeholders learn about change from the project rather than about the project from each other.
Project details
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Project | |
| Client | |
| Owner | |
| Date |
Objectives
- Every stakeholder knows what is changing and why.
- Decisions are communicated by the person who made them, to the people affected.
- No stakeholder learns about a material change from a third party.
- Concerns have a route into the project and a visible response.
Audience matrix
| Audience | What they need | Level of detail | Channel | Frequency | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Executive sponsor | Outcome, risk, decisions needed | Summary | Steering meeting, written update | Monthly | PM |
| Department heads | Impact on their department, timelines | Summary + impact | Briefing | Monthly | PM |
| Engineering team | Technical direction, changes, actions | Detailed | Stand-up, written notes | Weekly | Tech lead |
| Operations / on-call | Operational changes, runbooks, alarms | Detailed | Handover session, runbook updates | Per change | DevOps lead |
| Security | Control changes, findings, risks | Detailed | Security review | Per change | Security lead |
| All staff | What is changing and when | Headline | Email or town hall | At milestones | Sponsor |
| Customers (if affected) | Service changes, windows | Headline | Notice | Per change | Account owner |
Message templates
Milestone update
Subject: [Project] — [milestone] complete
What changed: [one or two sentences] What it means for you: [specific impact, or "no action required"] What happens next: [next milestone and date] Questions: [contact]
Change notice
Subject: Planned change — [system] — [date]
What: [change description] When: [window, with time zone] Impact: [none / degraded / unavailable — and for how long] If something goes wrong: [rollback plan and expected recovery time] Contact during the window: [name, channel]
Risk escalation
Subject: Risk escalation — [risk] — decision needed by [date]
Situation: [what has happened] Impact if unresolved: [consequence] Options: [option, cost, trade-off] Recommendation: [preferred option and why] Decision needed from: [name] by [date]
Schedule
| Date | Audience | Message | Owner | Channel | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kick-off announced | Planned | ||||
| Discovery findings | Planned | ||||
| Design approved | Planned | ||||
| Pilot results | Planned | ||||
| Go-live notice | Planned | ||||
| Handover complete | Planned |
Escalation path
| Level | Trigger | Who | Response time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delivery blocker | Project manager | Same day |
| 2 | Blocker affecting a milestone | Sponsor | 2 working days |
| 3 | Scope, budget or contractual impact | Executive sponsor | 5 working days |
Feedback channels
| Channel | Purpose | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly delivery review | Concerns raised and answered | PM |
| Anonymous survey | Culture and readiness feedback | Change lead |
| Direct escalation | Individual concerns | Sponsor |