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Communication Plan

Communication Plan: {{PROJECT_NAME}}

Project: {{PROJECT_NAME}} Version: {{VERSION}} Date: {{DATE}} Author: {{AUTHOR}} Status: Draft | In Review | Approved Reviewers: {{REVIEWERS}}

Document History

Version Date Author Changes
0.1 {{DATE}} {{AUTHOR}} Initial draft

1. Communication Objectives

This communication plan ensures that all stakeholders on {{PROJECT_NAME}} receive accurate, timely, and relevant information throughout the project lifecycle. Specific objectives:

  1. Transparency — All stakeholders have visibility into project status, risks, and decisions at the appropriate level of detail
  2. Alignment — Requirements, priorities, and decisions are communicated before work begins, not after
  3. Accountability — Issues, blockers, and escalations are surfaced quickly and resolved through defined channels
  4. Trust — Consistent, professional communication builds client confidence and internal cohesion
  5. Documentation — Key decisions, changes, and approvals are recorded and retrievable

2. Stakeholder Communication Needs Matrix

Stakeholder Role Information Needs Preferred Channel Frequency Detail Level Owner
{{NAME}} Client Sponsor Budget, milestone status, risks Email + Video Weekly Executive summary PM
{{NAME}} Client PO Feature status, backlog, demos Video + Chat Per-sprint Detailed PO
{{NAME}} End Users Launch date, training schedule Email Monthly + pre-launch Simple PM
Alem (CEO) ALAI CEO Budget, strategic issues Direct As needed / monthly Executive John
John (AI Director) AI Director Full project status, risks, decisions Daily digest Daily Detailed PM
{{NAME}} PM Blockers, task progress Chat Daily Detailed Team
{{NAME}} Tech Lead Technical decisions, architecture Chat Daily Technical Team
{{NAME}} QA Test status, bug counts Chat Daily Detailed QA

3. Communication Channels & Tools

Channel Tool Purpose Who Has Access Response SLA
Daily standup Mattermost / written Daily progress, blockers Dev team Same day
Sprint communication Project chat channel Sprint-specific updates Full team 4 hours
Video calls {{TOOL, e.g., Teams/Zoom/Meet}} Meetings requiring discussion Invited parties N/A (scheduled)
Status reports Email Formal stakeholder updates Stakeholders N/A (push)
Decision records Project wiki / CLAUDE Architectural & project decisions Team + future ref N/A (log)
Urgent/P1 issues Phone + Mattermost Critical blockers, incidents All stakeholders 15 minutes
Document sharing {{TOOL, e.g., Google Drive/Confluence}} Documents, specs, deliverables Authorized team N/A
Issue tracking Mission Control / GitHub Issues Bugs, tasks, change requests Team 24 hours
External email Email Formal client communication PM, John, Alem 24 hours
Signing Documenso (sign.alai.no) Contracts, NDAs, approvals Parties to sign Per agreement

4. Meeting Schedule

4.1 Regular Meetings

Meeting Purpose Frequency Day / Time Duration Required Attendees Facilitator Output
Daily Standup Progress, blockers, coordination Daily (weekdays) {{DAY}} {{TIME}} 15 min Dev team + PM Scrum Master Written standup log
Sprint Planning Backlog grooming, sprint goal, task assignment Every 2 weeks (Monday) {{TIME}} 2 hours Team + PO Scrum Master Sprint backlog
Sprint Review / Demo Demo completed features to client Every 2 weeks (Friday) {{TIME}} 1 hour Team + Client PO Sprint demo recording
Sprint Retrospective Team process improvement Every 2 weeks (Friday) {{TIME}} 1 hour Dev team (no client) Scrum Master Retro action items
Client Sync Relationship, quick updates, concerns Weekly {{DAY}} {{TIME}} 30 min PM + Client PO PM Meeting notes
Steering Committee Strategic decisions, budget, major risks Monthly {{DAY}} {{TIME}} 1 hour PM + John + Client Sponsor PM Decision record
Risk Review Risk register update Weekly (sprint planning) Embedded 15 min PM + Tech Lead PM Updated risk register

4.2 Event-Triggered Meetings

Trigger Meeting Type Called By Who Target Timing
P1 incident Incident response call PM or Tech Lead All hands Within 1 hour
New risk Score ≥ 15 Risk escalation PM PM + John + Sponsor Within 24 hours
Scope change request received Change review PM PM + TL + PO Within 3 business days
Milestone missed Recovery planning PM PM + TL + John Within 24 hours
Go-live decision point Go/No-Go review PM PM + TL + QA + John 5 days before planned launch

5. Reporting Cadence

Report Frequency Prepared By Distributed To Delivery Method Deadline
Daily Standup Log Daily PM / SM John + internal team Mattermost EOD each day
Sprint Report Per sprint PM Client + John Email Sprint end + 1 day
Weekly Status Report Weekly PM Client Sponsor + John Email Every {{WEEKDAY}} by {{TIME}}
Monthly Risk Report Monthly PM John + Alem Email 1st of each month
Monthly Budget Report Monthly PM John + Alem Email 1st of each month
Milestone Report Per milestone PM All stakeholders Email Day of milestone completion
Post-Launch Report Once PM John + Client + Alem Email 30 days post-launch

5.1 Weekly Status Report Template

SUBJECT: [{{PROJECT_NAME}}] Weekly Status — Week of {{DATE}}

STATUS: 🟢 On Track | 🟡 At Risk | 🔴 Delayed

## This Week
- {{COMPLETED_ITEM_1}}
- {{COMPLETED_ITEM_2}}

## Next Week
- {{PLANNED_ITEM_1}}
- {{PLANNED_ITEM_2}}

## Risks & Issues
| # | Issue/Risk | Status | Action Required From Client |
|---|------------|--------|----------------------------|
| 1 | {{ISSUE}} | {{STATUS}} | {{CLIENT_ACTION}} |

## Milestones
| Milestone | Target | Status |
|-----------|--------|--------|
| {{MILESTONE}} | {{DATE}} | ✅ Done / ⏳ In Progress / ⚠️ At Risk |

## Decisions Needed
- [ ] {{DECISION_NEEDED_BY_DATE}}

## Budget
- Spend to date: {{NOK}} / {{TOTAL_NOK}} ({{PERCENT}}%)

6. Escalation Paths & Response SLAs

Level Trigger Escalate To Channel Response SLA Resolution SLA
L1 Blocker within team (any) Tech Lead Chat 2 hours 4 hours
L2 Blocker affecting sprint goal PM Chat + call if needed 1 hour Same day
L3 Client-impacting issue PM + John Chat + email 1 hour 4 hours
L4 Milestone risk (>3 days slip) John + Client PM Email + video 4 hours 2 business days
L5 Budget overrun risk John → Alem Direct 2 hours 24 hours
L6 Contract/scope dispute John + Alem Direct + email 4 hours 3 business days
P1 Production incident PM + Tech Lead + John + Client Phone 15 minutes Per incident severity

7. Documentation Standards

7.1 File Naming Convention

[PROJECT]-[DOCUMENT_TYPE]-[DATE]-[VERSION].[ext]
Example: ACME-sprint-report-2026-02-14-v1.0.pdf
Example: ACME-meeting-notes-2026-02-14.md

7.2 Document Storage Locations

Document Type Location
Project charter, brief, RACI ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/docs/governance/
Requirements, user stories, BRD ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/docs/requirements/
Design files, mockups ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/docs/design/
Meeting notes ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/comms/meetings/
Standups ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/comms/standups/
Decision records ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/comms/decisions/
Sprint reports ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/comms/reports/
Client-facing documents ~/projects/{{PROJECT}}/comms/client/

7.3 Version Control

  • All documents use semantic versioning: MAJOR.MINOR (e.g., 1.0, 1.1, 2.0)
  • MAJOR version = significant structural change or approval milestone
  • MINOR version = content updates, corrections, additions
  • Every version tracked in the Document History table at the top of each file

8. External Communication Protocols

Communication Type Authorized Speakers Approval Required Notes
Client progress updates PM, John None (within scope) Must be factual, professional
Client escalations / issues PM → John John approval Never promise resolution timelines without TL input
Press / public statements Alem Alem only No project details without explicit approval
Partner communication John John Document all commitments
Legal / contract matters Alem + John Alem No binding commitments without Alem sign-off
Social media Alem Alem Check brand guidelines first
Third-party vendor comms Tech Lead / DevOps PM awareness Cc PM on all vendor emails

9. Crisis Communication Plan

9.1 Crisis Triggers

  • Production data breach or security incident

  • 2-week unplanned project delay

  • Client relationship breakdown
  • Team member critical unavailability (e.g., extended illness)
  • Budget overrun > 25%
  • Legal dispute

9.2 Crisis Communication Protocol

  1. Identify — Team member identifies crisis; notifies PM immediately
  2. Contain — PM + Tech Lead assess scope and containment options (max 1 hour)
  3. Escalate — PM notifies John within 1 hour; John notifies Alem if L4+
  4. Communicate — PM prepares crisis communication draft; John approves before sending
  5. Update — Stakeholders receive updates every 4 hours until resolved
  6. Resolve — Crisis declared over by John; post-mortem conducted within 48 hours
  7. Learn — /learning-opportunity — crisis becomes system fix

9.3 Crisis Communication Template

SUBJECT: [URGENT] {{PROJECT_NAME}} — {{CRISIS_SUMMARY}}

Dear {{STAKEHOLDER}},

We are writing to inform you of an issue affecting {{PROJECT_NAME}}.

SITUATION: {{WHAT_HAPPENED}}
IMPACT: {{WHAT_IS_AFFECTED}}
IMMEDIATE ACTIONS TAKEN: {{WHAT_WE_HAVE_DONE}}
NEXT STEPS: {{WHAT_WE_WILL_DO}}
EXPECTED RESOLUTION: {{TIMELINE}}

We will provide updates every {{FREQUENCY}} until this is resolved.

Contact: {{PM_NAME}} — {{PM_EMAIL}} — {{PM_PHONE}}

{{NAME}}
{{TITLE}}

Approval

Role Name Date Signature
Author
Reviewer
Project Manager
AI Director (John)
Client Sponsor

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