4 Top Tips for Improving Client Communication

As a project manager it is your job to effectively communicate between your team of experts and the client. This particular skill takes a lot of patience that simply cannot be planned for within your project management framework.

Here are 5 top tips for improving client communication:

1. Implement regular updates

Although you will more than likely assume you need to do this anyway, it’s something that can fall by the wayside extremely quickly if it is not monitored. You must make sure you’re completely focused on the plan you have created and remain disciplined throughout. Make sure a detailed, updated version of the budget and schedule is logged and sent to your client weekly. You’ll want to include things like; the previous weeks task completion, budget breakdown, next weeks schedule including responsibility clarification, late tasks or changes to the budget explaining the details of this and how it may further impact the project plan.

You’ll want to start doing this after week 1, even if you’re effectively listing no changes. Remember it’s always better to get into good habits and your client will get a good idea of what to expect from you on a weekly basis.

2. Make it clear whose responsibility a task is

Many successful projects involve the client as an important member of the team. Although you may not think a client would appreciate being managed by you, they usually feel much more in the loop and in control than if you don’t. Make sure their tasks are clearly outlined including the detrimental impact not completing the task will have on the project. You may feel a little uncomfortable doing it at first but clearly explaining from the start of the task that you expect clear and consistent communication from your client will enable them to understand what to expect. This initial discussion should also present the opportunity for the client to designate people within their organisation to deal with your queries if they are unavailable. You should clearly state that you will need to be able to speak to a representative able to make decisions so that you don’t end up stuck waiting for delayed answers or responses all the time.

3. Be Pro Active

Being proactive is never a bad thing and it means you’ll impress the client and keep them onside. Although you’ll be sticking to a strict schedule and delivery list, you can always add some of the finer details that you know the client should be doing but are easy for you to do as you go along. Although you’ll be focused on your ‘must do’s’ it’s OK to include a few ‘could do’s’ if time allows as you go along for extra measure.

4. Acknowledge schedule changes

Although it’s never something you’ll want to set out to do, inevitably sometimes schedule changes occur and it’s important you embrace them. Learning why the project schedule has changed will help you stop this delay happening again. Examine who is responsible; which events led to the delay and most importantly how it can be prevented in the future. A good project risk management method can help you determine the risks that may happen and how to deal with them if they do, but sometimes delays just happen through technical issues or various other problems and you can only learn. It is imperative you keep the client up to date with any changes and if they are responsible for the delay you must make it clear how that has affected the project deadline. Learning to be flexible with the project schedule, whilst still retaining control, is an essential skill and some of the techniques for doing this can be learnt on most project management courses.