Communication tools’ impact on project communication efficiency An evaluation of traditional communication tools and Social Media Linda Berg Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Karlskrona 2017 Master Thesis in Engineering and Industrial Economy Supervisors Shahiduzzaman Quoreshi, BTH Anders Vinblad, Volvo GTT [Blanc page] Abstract While project communication is positively correlated with project performance, little is known about communication tools impact on project communication efficiency. Efficient project communication has shown to improve communication and thereby increase competitiveness. Efficiency is dependent on what criteria are chosen to define efficiency; however, the literature expose some barriers and driving factors towards efficient project communication, such as: project complexity, company culture, and trust within the project team. Social Media has proven higher levels of efficiency compared to traditional communication tools in project, yet few Swedish companies adapt Social Media for internal communication. Thus, this study has investigated what impact the choice of communication tool might have on communication efficiency by performing a case study at Volvo GTT where traditional communication tools are predominately used. The study found that traditional communication tools contribute to decreased efficiency while the attitude towards Social Media is lack of safety issues. Still, high values in trust are generated through traditional tools. Compromising secrecy can be prevented through self-hosted Social Media solutions which is why Volvo should consider to decrease usage of traditional communication tools and instead look for more efficient solutions such as Social Media. i [Blanc page] ii Sammanfattning Trots att projektkommunikation är positivt korrelaterat med projektets lönsamhet är förståelsen om kommunikationsverktygs påverkan på projektkommunikationens effektivitet bristfällig. Effektiv projektkommunikation har påvisat förbättrad kommunikationen och därigenom ökad konkurrenskraft. Effektivitet är beroende av vilka kriterier som väljs för att definiera effektivitet, men litteraturen har ändå exponerat ett antal barriärer och förutsättningar för effektiv kommunikation: projektkomplexitet, företagskultur och tillit gentemot projektmedlemmar. Trots att sociala medier har påvisat högre effektivitet jämfört med traditionella kommunikationsverktyg i projekt har få svenska företag implementerat sociala medier för internkommunikation. Denna studie syftar därför till att undersöka vilken påverkan valet av kommunikationsverktyg har på effektiv kommunikation genom att utföra en fallstudie på Volvo GTT där mestadels traditionella verktyg används. Studien visar att traditionella verktyg bidrar till förminskad effektivitet och att sociala medier anses vara bristfälligt gällande säkerhet. Traditionella verktyg genererar däremot höga nivåer av tillit. Säkerhet behöver inte riskeras genom att välja sociala medier där information inte passerar en tredje part. Volvo bör därför överväga att minska användandet av traditionella verktyg och istället söka efter en effektivare lösning såsom sociala medier. iii [Blanc page] iv Preface There might be only my name on the report; however, I was never alone. To my supervisors both at Volvo and BTH: thank you. Thank you thank you thank you. For all the simple yet brilliant questions only a true master can ask. Those questions made my master thesis possible. I would also like to say a big thank you to all involved from Volvo GTT for your engagement in my thesis work. To mom, dad and my aunt: thank you for your endless love and tremendous support through my personal journey. I simply would not make it without you. v [Blanc page] vi Nomenclature Notations Symbol Description Cost of Waste (SEK) Time spent on waiting for response (hours) Time spent on searching for information (hours) 푚 Time spent on meetings (hours) 푖 Information quality 푆̅ Average salary paid to project team members Acronyms Volvo GTT Volvo Group Trucks Technology IT Information technology [Blanc page] TABLE OF CONTENT 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 BACKGROUND .............................................................................................................. 4 1.2 OBJECTIVE ..................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 DELIMITATIONS ........................................................................................................... 5 1.4 THESIS QUESTIONS ..................................................................................................... 5 2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 7 2.1 PROJECT COMMUNICATION .......................................................................................... 7 2.1.1 EFFICIENT PROJECT COMMUNICATION .............................................................. 9 2.2 TOOLS FOR PROJECT COMMUNICATION ................................................................. 13 2.2.1 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY – EVALUATION ................................................ 13 2.2.2 TRADITIONAL COMMUNICATION TOOLS ......................................................... 15 2.2.3 SOCIAL MEDIA ......................................................................................................... 15 3 VOLVO GROUP TRUCKS TECHNOLOGY 22 4 METHOD 25 4.1 DATA COLLECTION ........................................................................................................ 25 4.1.1 CASE STUDY ............................................................................................................. 27 4.2 DATA ANALYSIS ............................................................................................................. 31 4.2.1 CROSS TABLE ........................................................................................................... 32 4.2.2 MEASUREMENTS ..................................................................................................... 32 5 RESULT 34 5.1 THE GENERAL ATTITUDE ABOUT PROJECT COMMUNICATION AT VOLVO GROUP TRUCKS TECHNOLOGY ........................................................................................ 34 5.2 COMMUNICATION TOOLS USED AT VOLVO GROUP TRUCKS TECHNOLOGY 34 5.2.1 TRADITIONAL COMMUNICATION TOOLS’ EFFICIENCY ................................ 36 5.2.2 COST OF WASTE OF TRADITIONAL COMMUNICATION TOOLS ................... 40 5.3 SOCIAL MEDIA ATTITUDE ............................................................................................ 41 6 DISCUSSION 42 7 CONCLUSION 49 8 RECOMMENDATIONS AND FUTURE WORK 51 9 REFERENCES 52 9.1 BOOKS ............................................................................................................................... 52 9.2 ARTICLES .......................................................................................................................... 53 9.3 LINKS ................................................................................................................................. 58 APPENDIX A 59 Blanc page 1 INTRODUCTION The purpose of the first chapter in this thesis work is to provide the reader with an overview of the subject chosen for the thesis but also to present the objective, thesis questions and delimitations. The thesis is executed at Volvo Group Trucks Technology, which is a part of the Volvo Group organisation. Project communication is the transmission of data, information and knowledge (Robbins, 1993) between two or several stakeholders (Allen et al., 1980; Katz, 1982) and plays a key role in project success (Jo & Shim, 2005). Projects occur when faster decision making tools and techniques are needed than possible in a normal operation (Munns & Bjeirmi, 1996; Murphy & Ledwith, 2007) and include resources provided by the company in which the project is operated (Remidez & Jones, 2012). As project organisations grow larger and the complexity of the project objective increases, it becomes harder for project teams to manage efficient communication (Remidez & Jones, 2012); project team members representing different knowledge areas need to communicate despite possessing different knowledge backgrounds. Therefore, project teams need to understand and operate efficient project communication. Efficient project communication is achieved when meaning of information sent conform to interpretations of information received (Robbins, 1993); the meaning intended by the transmitter should conform to the interpretation made by the receiver. Furthermore, efficient project communication requires information to travel fast. In contrast, inefficient communication includes waste activities, which are activities with no value for the end customer (Kilczewski, 2004). The objective of performing efficient communication is therefore to minimize waste activities (Liker, 2009) without jeopardizing the understanding and clarity of information. The Cost of Waste activities can be mathematically explained as the relationship between Cost of Waste, 푊, price paid by the buyer of the goods occurred from demand, 푃푑, and price paid by the seller of the goods occurred from supply, 푃. The formula for this is defined as 푃푑 = 푃 + 푊 (Sing, 2008; Norton, 1992) The equation demonstrates that companies want to minimize waste to gain maximal profit from goods or service sold; if Cost of Waste in a project exceeds price paid by seller, the project outcome fails and loses its performance. Hence, Cost of Waste activities determines sensitivity towards competitiveness (Sing, 2008). Difficulties in managing efficient communication