Project Managers’ Communication Behaviors and Their Relation to Information Systems Use : An Exploratory Study

• In Event: B.E.S.T.: Organizations, Communication, and Technology

Abstract

There is considerable interest in characteristics of project managers that are associated with their effective performance, especially with regard to their communication competencies in team settings. However, efforts to develop a research-based framework of “effective” project managers' behaviors must consider a complex array of project sizes, duration, complexities, pace, objectives, constraints, and managerial styles. This study examined a broader set of communication behaviors associated with project managers across several industries. Key finding from the purposive sample (n = 160) of project management team members revealed significant differences between the importance of messy talk, open communication environment, and initiating structure and planning and their actual reported use in project teams. Analyses further indicated that actual reported communication behaviors and information system use significantly predicted project success. These findings offer tentative insight into the importance of communication behaviors role in project settings in general and in project managers' actions in particular.

Authors

• Dron M Mandhana, The University of Texas at Austin

• Vernon D. Miller, Michigan State U

• Sinem Korkmaz, Michigan State U