Assembling A Collaborative Team - Other - Page 111
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In some practices, the Plan might be derived from QA processes and may be
referred to as the Project Quality Plan or a similar title. The title is, of course,
irrelevant. Of primary importance are the contents and ensuring that they are
selected to achieve the aims set out above. The contents may vary and be
adjusted depending on the client, the scale of the project and the nature of the
project team. There may be benefits in certain protocols and processes being
referred to or included as appendices rather than being imbedded into the Plan
to make the Plan more useable and strategic in nature. Some of the subjects
listed above are covered in greater detail below.
Project directory
A directory containing the contact names of every individual involved in a project,
their role, and title and contact details is a simple but invaluable tool that can
speed up communication. Further clarity can be obtained by issuing a project
organisation chart (the Project Roles Table or Contractual Tree could also be
used). On larger projects, individual company organisation charts that show
internal team structures along with roles and responsibilities can be useful.
The directory might be in the form of a document but is now typically part of
the information management portal used to facilitate collaborative working.
Communication Strategy
The Communication Strategy should consider all aspects of communication on a
project. For example:
• Meetings
– What types of meetings are required; how often and where will they be held?
– If meetings are to be held remotely, does the Technology Strategy set out
how this will occur?
– Who will chair and minute the meetings?
• Queries
– How will queries be raised and resolved?
– How can they be logged for future reference?
– How can they be monitored to ensure that no backlogs occur and to check
the accuracy of responses?
• Data exchange formats and transfer mechanisms
– How will information be transferred between members of the project team?
– What file formats will be used for transferring information?
– What is the means of transferring information (email/extranet/FTP site/
file-sharing software, etc.)? See the section on the Technology Strategy below.
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