How do you create a release communication calendar and manage expectations and deadlines?

Release communication is a key aspect of release management, as it ensures that all stakeholders are informed, aligned, and prepared for the changes that a new release brings. However, creating a release communication calendar and managing expectations and deadlines can be challenging, especially when dealing with complex or large-scale releases. In this article, we will share some tips and best practices on how to plan, execute, and monitor your release communication strategy effectively.

1 Define your communication goals and audience

Before you start creating your release communication calendar, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and who you want to reach with your messages. Your communication goals should be aligned with your release objectives and value proposition, and they should be SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound). Your communication audience should include all the internal and external stakeholders who are affected by or interested in your release, such as customers, users, partners, employees, managers, sponsors, and media. You should segment your audience based on their needs, preferences, and roles, and tailor your communication accordingly.

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Bhavna Negi

Senior Technical Program Manager | Cost Optimisation | Google Cloud Migration | Data Engineering, Releases- India and US | Mentor@ADPlist @topmate
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By combining a well-planned release communication calendar * Highlighting milestones, * Defined objectives , * Communication clarity , * Contingency Planning as well as a deadline top track Enable minimize surprises, and ensure a smoother release process.

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2 Choose your communication channels and tools

Once you have defined your communication goals and audience, you need to decide the best channels and tools for delivering your messages. Consider factors such as the type and complexity of your release, the size and diversity of your audience, the frequency and timing of your communication, and the feedback and engagement opportunities. Common channels for release communication include email, newsletters, blogs, webinars, social media, in-app notifications, and dashboards. Email is a widely used and effective channel for sending formal messages to a large or specific audience. A newsletter can be used to share updates, highlights, and tips about your release to a general or interested audience. Blogs are great for telling stories, sharing insights, and showcasing benefits of your release to a potential or existing audience. Webinars are live and interactive channels for demonstrating features, answering questions, and collecting feedback about your release to a targeted or invited audience. Social media is a dynamic and viral channel for creating buzz, building relationships, and generating word-of-mouth about your release to a broad or niche audience. In-app notifications are direct and timely channels for alerting users about your release within your product or service. Lastly, dashboards are visual tools for tracking progress, measuring status, and reporting impact of your release to internal or external stakeholders.

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3 Create your communication calendar and content

When creating your communication calendar and content, align it with your release plan, balance frequency and quality, adapt it to your audience and channel, and test and review before sending. Your communication should reflect the phases, stages, and tasks of your release plan, communicating the right information at the right time to the right people. It should be frequent enough to keep your audience informed and engaged, but not too frequent to overwhelm or annoy them. Additionally, it should be clear, concise, consistent, and accurate, customized to the needs of different audience segments, optimized for the features of different communication channels, and tested and reviewed before sending.

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Venkata V

Project & Program Management | PMP, PgMP, SAFe - RTE, CSM, A-CSM, CSPO, A-CSPO | IT Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) | Agile & Scaled Agile (SAFe)
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If the team collaboratively creates a release calendar that incorporates input and suggestions from all team members, regardless of their role, the likelihood of completing the set milestones increases, and the calendar becomes a valuable tool for the entire team. Conversely, when the release calendar is imposed top-down with high pressure, the chances of missing milestones increase as it fails to take into account the input and experience of the team members who execute the tasks.

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4 Execute and monitor your communication strategy

Once you have created your communication calendar and content, you need to execute and monitor your communication strategy. Your communication team should coordinate and collaborate to ensure that your communication is delivered on time, on budget, and on quality; any issues or changes should be communicated and resolved promptly. Additionally, your communication should be aligned and integrated with other processes related to or affected by your release, such as development, testing, deployment, support, and marketing. Lastly, it should be evaluated and improved based on the feedback and data collected from your audience, channels, tools, and metrics; the lessons learned from your experience should also be taken into account.

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5 Celebrate and appreciate your communication success

Finally, after you have executed and monitored your communication strategy successfully, you should take the time to recognize and reward your own efforts, as well as those of your communication team and partners. Acknowledge their achievements and feedback, and share your successes with your audience and stakeholders. Celebrating and appreciating your communication success can help to enhance your credibility, boost motivation, and inspire innovation. This can demonstrate your professionalism and competence, increase enthusiasm and enjoyment, and stimulate creativity and curiosity. Doing so will help to build trust and confidence with your audience and stakeholders, as well as foster a positive and supportive communication culture that encourages continuous learning and improvement.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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How do you create a release communication calendar and manage expectations and deadlines?

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1 Define your communication goals and audience

2 Choose your communication channels and tools

3 Create your communication calendar and content

4 Execute and monitor your communication strategy

5 Celebrate and appreciate your communication success

6 Here’s what else to consider

Release Management

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