The Status Report Guide

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction to the Status Report

    1. Why Read this Document?

      The status report is a critical tool for managing the perceived value of your projects and maximizing the perceived value of your services.

      I've seen terrible projects presented brilliantly, while magnificent projects appeared to be nothing but failures.

      In a quest to understand how to deliver a great status report, I conducted extensive research and discovered something astonishing! There are almost no books or manuals discussing how to deliver a great status report.

      The presenting of status is still considered an art (something that is learned by doing) rather than a science (something that can be performed by following rules). Sure, you'll improve with practice, but do you really want to experiment and make mistakes in front of your bosses? Wouldn't you rather impress them and save yourself the pain of looking foolish and the regret of failing to meet their expectations?

      The good news is that most people are awful status presenters. They continue to make many of the same mistakes each and every time they present. While this is terrible news for them, it represents an amazing opportunity to you. If you can master the basics of status reporting, you will be far ahead of your peers and truly stand out as a reliable expert who can be trusted with the most important and highly visible projects.

      This is a living document and will be updated and improved from time to time. If you find any errors or omissions in this text, please contact me, and I will do my best to address your concerns.

    2. Understanding the Status Report

      1. What Is a Status Report?

        So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss. - The Art of War, Sun Tzu

        Self discovery, though an important topic, is well outside the scope of this book. We can't help you to know yourself. We can, however, help you to understand your enemy - the status report.

        A status report is often defined as a formal presentation, given on a routine basis, that describes the current state of a project and predicts its future state. Let's take a look at each part.

        • A formal presentation: A performance (either written, oral or both) to provide information to an audience of one or more people
        • Given on a routine basis: Typically, a report is given at an interval between weekly and monthly.
        • Describes the current state: Provides a holistic view of what has happened so far and where the project would be if stopped right now.
        • Predicts the future state: Provides an educated forecast of what will happen in the future
        1. Goals for a Status Report

          The biggest stumbling block for most presenters is that they don't understand each party's goals for a status report. A great status report should address your goals, as well as your audience's goals. The number one mistake most people make when delivering a status report is to focus on only delivering the current status of a project. The secret to successfully presenting a great status report is to understand all of the goals of the parties involved and ensure that their needs are met.

          1. Their Goals

            The audience is typically composed of high ranking individuals with a few expectations for the presenters. Their goals are as follows:

            1. Determine if money and resources should continue to be spent - Every project requires resources that could be spent elsewhere, whether those resources are measured in dollars, labor, supplies, office space or infrastructure. Because resources are limited, managers have to constantly assess whether their investments are being made wisely. Although you may have a limited visibility into alternative uses for resources, you should be able to provide information about your project to demonstrate what you are using and what you are producing. Are there areas that can be cut? Are other areas liable to present significant gains with a bit more investment?
            2. Figure out if corrective action is required to increase the odds of project success - It's possible that you don't have the authority or ability to make certain changes to your project. Your supervisors/customers may have the authority that you lack. Ideally, you will not simply mention a problem that you are facing. You should always attempt to provide one or more possible recommendations as to what type of action is most needed. It's one thing to tell a manager that your technical infrastructure is severely delaying your project. It's quite another to say that your technical infrastructure is delaying your project, and a purchase authorization of $200 for new hardware would allow you to correct the problem. Don't make your managers connect the dots. Present the information as simply as possible and ask for authorization. If the answer to your question is anything other than yes or no no, you might not be providing enough information in your report.
            3. Decide if the project is in good hands - This is an often forgotten goal, but it is critical to your career success. Managers won't just be evaluating your project, they will be evaluating you. Are you able to report on the status of the project effectively? Do you seem like the kind of person who notices important things and then reports back honestly, objectively and accurately? Are you a good leader that will keep the effort on course? Most importantly, can they turn their attention elsewhere, knowing that you can be trusted?

            One of the least valuable status reports imaginable is one that consists of vague reassurances that everything is fine, but contains little to no evidence to support those claims. Nevertheless, this is exactly the type of report given by most novice presenters.

            Any manager worth his salt will become alarmed, having been burned by such reports before. When you are preparing and delivering your report, remember the word "certainty." Are you providing enough facts so that conclusions can be made with certainty? If not, you need to go back and revise your work.

            1. Your Goals

              Your goals will be slightly different than those of your managers. Here are the main goals that you should be focusing on:

              1. Prevent surprises - Managers don't usually like surprises. They'd much rather hear about a problem that may occur six months from now instead of hearing the details about an unexpected problem that just occurred. A few sentences now can ensure that if problems happen, they won't come as a shock and encourage unreasoned, emotional reactions from the managers receiving your report. Surprises don't always have to be negative. You can also have good surprises. Let's say that your team is developing some farmland, and you discover a huge goldmine on the property. Wouldn't it be worth mentioning?
              2. Impress the audience - For many presenters, delivering a status report can be an exciting opportunity. Rarely will you have a chance to be in front of important decision makers. For this reason, if you can demonstrate the ability to gather and present relevant facts and analysis, you will have the opportunity to get noticed and increase your odds for receiving increased salary, more important work and promotions.
              3. Request resources - A good status report should not be a sugarcoated presentation. If you find yourself facing a problem, your audience will have the power to assist you. For this reason, it is very beneficial to present problems and issues with honesty and forthrightness. It is often helpful if you can describe the problem in detail and present possible corrective actions for your stakeholders to consider. Providing solutions will reinforce your image as a thoughtful leader and will help reduce panicked reactions on the part of the audience.

              It should be noted that one commonly mentioned goal for status reports is not listed above. Nowhere do I suggest that a goal is to convince the managers to continue supporting your project.

              A status report is not a sales pitch for your project. It should be objective (not persuasive) in nature.

              It is quite possible that your project is proceeding beyond your manager's wildest expectations, but should still be canceled. Often, forces well outside your control and responsibility may change the value of a project's deliverables. For instance, a project to build a new shopping center might be well within its budget, the architectural diagrams might be complete, the building permits might be approved and a location have been chosen. Yet, if the economy begins to falter, the projected profitability of the project may be reduced to such an extent that the project no longer makes economic sense to pursue.

              Decisions to cancel or postpone a project are often made by managers for reasons that may have nothing to do with your performance or the actions of your team. It is vital to keep your focus on ensuring the relevance and objectivity of your information and analysis. Your job is to report the facts. What the managers do with those facts is well outside of your control and interest.

            2. Preparations

              Success depends upon previous preparation, and without such preparation there is sure to be failure. - Confucius

              One of the biggest mistakes that one can make is to under-prepare for a status report. Fortunately there are a few simple steps that you can take to build your confidence and to ensure that your status report meets the needs of your audience.

              1. Perform a Stealthy Reconnoiter

                The good news is that you don't have to be a ninja or have access to a spy plane to gather the information you'll need to present an effective report tailored to your particular audience.

                By asking a few questions to your boss, coworkers and folks who have previously presented to your stakeholders, you can tailor your report to the preferences and standards of your organization.

                Questions to focus on include:

                • Who will be in the audience? Once you know who will attend, you'll have a better understanding of how to target your report and what to expect. Even if you don't recognize every name, you will probably recognize their department designations and be able to make some educated guesses about the interests of each party. If all audience members are from the marketing department, it is probably safe to assume that you'll receive many more questions about customer feedback than questions about legal quirks that might affect your project.
                • What types of questions are typically asked? It's a common problem in many businesses - you have limited time, so you'll need to target your energies to where they are most likely to pay off. I worked at one company where financial information was considered the single most important part of a status report. Before presenting status, I'd make sure that I could speak at great length about our spend rates and how every single dollar was allocated. Years later, I moved to another company where money wasn't much of an issue. All they cared about was making sure that we met our timelines. Do you think I focused my reports on the financials at this new firm? Hardly. I focused my energies on presenting the types of information that was most desired by the people in the audience.
                • Who has the authority to affect your project (change funding levels, reassign staff members or outright cancel it)? A common mistake for presenters to make is to focus on the highest ranking folks in the room. Don't fall into that trap! There are often people at lower levels that have the interest and ability to either assist your project or kill it outright. For instance, let's assume that you're a manager of a fast food restaurant. You're delivering a status report on your efforts to improve the food safety at your location after a failed inspection by the health department. In the audience are the vice president of corporate finance, your district manager and an analyst with the health and safety division. Let's try to figure out which is most important person for you to impress:
                  • The VP of finance probably doesn't care about what you have to say and is only in the room because he's waiting for someone else to discuss another project. While he has a lot of authority, he has very little reason to care about your report one way or the other.
                  • The district manager is pretty important. He might be your boss, so you don't want to upset him or look foolish. He has a vested interest in your report and will likely be listening very closely.
                  • The analyst is probably the lowest ranking person in the room, but he is also the most important for you. His evaluation of your work will likely carry a lot of weight with your boss, because of his specialized knowledge of food safety. If you can meet the information needs of the analyst, odds are that you will be able to meet your manager's needs as well.
                • How much time do you have to present? Understanding the length of time available will help you on two fronts. First, it will provide a guide for choosing how many items (breadth) to discuss. It will also clue you into the level of detail (depth) that your report should include. Don't make the assumption that it's easier to prepare a shorter presentation than a longer one. Sometimes understanding what needs to be cut and what the most important facts are can be a very challenging task. As Mark Twain once wrote, "I didn't have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead." Learn from that great writer! Weigh the importance of each item that you intend to discuss. The more relevant, important and timely the information, the more likely it should be included in detail. Remember, as discussed above, there is a very strong difference between what is relevant to your presentation's audience and what is important to the project.
                • What type of visuals can you use? Many offices now have the ability to either present visuals on a protector screen or a television. While it's great to know what devices will be available, it is absolutely critical that you actually make sure everything works with your system the day before you present. Knowing that a projector is available is insufficient for your purposes. You also have to know that it works with your laptop, that you have all of the necessary hardware connections and that you know how to use the devices. Make sure that you actually try to use your visuals, prior to the day of the presentation so that you can be sure that your presentation will not be hobbled by technical troubles. The quickest way to reduce the effectiveness of a presentation is to experience length troubles getting started with the visuals.
                • Who delivers the best status reports? It's often easy to pick out who you think is the best presenter of status reports. It's often a lot harder to pick out the person that the important decision makers thinks delivers the best reports. Ask around. Don't just get names, but try to understand why. Be sure to ask people who watch presenters as well as those who present themselves.
                1. When in Doubt: Cheat

                  "To know the road ahead, ask those coming back" - Chinese Proverb

                  There is no rule that you have to figure everything out for yourself. This isn't a high school exam or a college essay, whereby you have to do all of the work yourself. It's a status report. One of the easiest ways to understand what to expect and to eliminate fear is to watch other people deliver their status reports - especially to stakeholders that you have in common. Before you have to deliver a report, watch others deliver theirs, and take notes about what works and what doesn't.

                  1. The Early Bird Gets the Worm

                    People who are scared tend to hide. Think about how you'll start the presentation for your next status report. You are probably imagining yourself getting in front of a big audience and talking about your project, right?

                    Wrong!

                    If you think that your report should only start when you've heard your name called, you're missing a huge opportunity. By getting to the presentation room early, you can:

                    • Warm up the audience. One of the easiest things you can do to enhance your presentation is to get to the meeting room ahead of time and talk to everyone in the audience. As people enter the room, shake their hands, remind them of your name and your project. As you build a connection with others (even small connections), they will be less likely to act negatively to your presentation. They'll see you as a distinct person that they know, rather than as a random person providing status on a project. Your introduction doesn't have to be particularly creative. Something like this would be wholly sufficient for a first shot:
                      "Good morning, I'm Gerry the lead engineer on the franchise project."

                      It's not rocket science, but a friendly introduction can go a long way.

                    • Deal with unexpected problems. In the movies, a person walks into the room, gives a presentation to an adoring crowd and then goes on his merry way. That's a really bad model to try to replicate in the real world. Strange things happen. Laptops crash, booked meeting rooms are seized by high-level managers, projector bulbs burn out, white board markers go missing... the list goes on and on. A bit of extra time prior to the meeting can make the difference between looking like a professional who delivers flawless presentations and a sweaty, last-minute planner who looks highly-disorganized and probably shouldn't be trusted with anything important.
                    1. Be an Even Earlier Early Bird

                      Just as there is no reason to leave everything to the last minute, there is no reason the leave everything to the last day either.

                      There is no reason to wait to provide status until your status report.

                      This might be the biggest surprise in the entire document! The flash bang approach of information delivery is common, but it is also very dangerous. Particularly when there is significant period of time between status presentations, finding key staff members, and providing highlights to them (in private, informal meetings) is key to presenting a successful status report for several reasons:
                      • It makes rash managerial outbursts unlikely:

                        Managers will not feel the need to take swift action, as they will not have to "save face" in front of their peers.

                      • It reduces the odds of embarrassment:

                        In the case of an error or mistake on the part of you, or your team, you can air your dirty laundry in private. There is no advantage to admitting fault in public when you can do so in private.

                      • It provides time for brainstorming and problem correction:

                        Detailing problems early means that managers will be able to look at their budgets, timeliness and communicate with their peers to figure out how they can best support you. If you have a monthly status meeting and wait an entire month to tell your managers about a funding issue, they'll have a month fewer to figure out what they can do to assist you.

                      • It allows more time to address unexpected points of interest:

                        Speaking to people ahead of time will clue you in to the types of information that will be most relevant to their needs. Situations completely outside of the scope of your project may completely change the types of information that are considered important to those above you. The earlier you find out, the more prepared you can look when in front of a large audience.

                        For instance, let's assume that you're running a small grape vineyard for a wine company. Normally, your managers tend to focus on grape yields and quality. Unbeknownst to you, however, many other vineyard owners have been accidentally mislabeling their grapes, causing large numbers of returns by your employer. Even if you are marking all of your grapes perfectly, you can be sure that you will be quizzed at depth on your grape labeling practices.

                      • It will reduce pressure on the managers: Managers are often under immense pressure to accomplish more with fewer resources. The more often you check in, the less worried they will be about surprises. Why should they be worried if you check in regularly and inform them of problems when they occur? From their point of view, a status report becomes a formality in which they can look good in front of their peers rather than a source of worry.
                      1. Prepare Constantly

                        Many people seem to think that status information must be recent in order to be useful. These kinds of folks tend to wait until the last possible minute to record their project's status.

                        This is faulty logic for a number of reasons:

                        • Memory failures:

                          If you wait to the last minute, you may forget all sorts of important items. You'll forget the rationale behind some of your decisions. You'll forget hallway conversations. You'll lose some of your notes.

                        • Limited time to revise and consult:

                          There will often be some touchy issues in your reports. If you're having problems with certain groups of people, you may find that you need to massage your message and conduct research to better understand your stakeholders' needs. With more time to reflect about difficult situations, you can present the same issue in a more easily understood and palatable way. Consider the following two sentences:

                          Progress on the technical manual has slowed because the graphics team has refused to work on the project.
                          Progress on the technical manual has slowed because the graphics team has been reallocated to work on the new advertising project.

                          Both statements cover the same issue on your project, but the first is accusatory (and likely to create unnecessary hostility), while the second provides useful information in a non-hostile manner. The second version doesn't make anyone look unprofessional, it just details a situation that managers can easily understand and deal with. The graphics team would almost certainly go along with the second sentence but become absolutely hostile when presented with the first.

                        • Limited time to practice: Many speakers, especially those who aren't experienced in giving status reports will need to practice their presentations and ensure that they are able to speak confidently and in an organized manner. You may have heard the phrase "practice makes perfect." While you may not be perfect after practicing a few times, repetition is a great means to ensure that you can deliver your message effectively.
                        1. Know Your Audience

                          You have a list of people who will be in the audience, right?

                          Ideally you'll know names, positions and departments. You can often find this information by looking at your invitation (if emailed), speaking to your boss, or asking other people who have presented in the past.

                          Ideally you'll want to figure out whom you need to please and whom you can likely ignore. Do any stakeholders in your audience want your project to fail? Are you taking resources that they'd prefer to send somewhere else? Are there any groups running competing products or efforts? Thinking about the motivations of those in the audience will help you to predict the types of difficult interactions to expect.

                        2. Your Demeanor

                          You demeanor is critical to the delivery of a strong status report. Yes, information is important, but you are not there to simply provide information about the project. If you were, you'd just send your analysis in writing. You are also there to demonstrate that you are in control of the project. Demonstrate it!

                          1. Be Positive

                            Not every project will be a fantastic success. Even if your project isn't going well, avoid blame. Analysis should be non-accusatory and objective in nature. Your outlook should demonstrate that even if significant obstacles exist, you are happy to continue your efforts, should managers believe that continued efforts are warranted. No one likes to be around a negative person.

                            1. Be Energetic

                              Tired, exhausted, unenthusiastic. Are these words that you want to describe you? Certainly not. Managers want energetic folks who will go the extra mile. Even if you are that type of person, you may not appear to be that type of person (especially when surrounded by many individuals who outrank you). Being energetic is different than being positive. I've seen energetic people who are angry, throw things and yell. While you don't want to do these things, you want to demonstrate that you have the energy to tackle problems as they come up.

                              1. Be Confident

                                There's a fine line between being confident and being cocky. Confidence is key to any presentation and doubly so for status reports.
                                • In the case that a project is going poorly, a confident appearance will help ensure that the audience thinks "Oh, the project may be going poorly, but at least we've got someone who knows how to correct the problems."
                                • In the case that it is going well, a confident person will help ensure that the audience thinks that everything will continue to proceed well.
                                1. So How Do I Do That?

                                  Entire books have been written on just body language for public speaker. Here are a few basic tips:

                                  • Act like a lion. Much as a lion's mane makes it look larger (and thus more intimidating), you want to appear as large as possible. Stand up straight. Slouching reduces your vertical height. Use horizontal space. Keep your arms away from the core of your body - defensive people try to protect their abdomens with their arms, confident people keep their arms away from their abdomens so they can manipulate the world around them. By making gestures with your arms, you will appear less fearful and larger.
                                  • Use eye contact to your advantage. Find the handful of people who really matter and make sure to make eye contact with them while you are speaking. An easy rule of thumb is to switch to another audience member every time you make a new point. A more advanced rule is to make eye contact with the person who cares most about each point. All things being equal, make eye contact with the accountant when talking about financials, and with the human resources manager when talking about staffing issues. Never face away from the audience. Carry notes if you must, or be prepared to look at your laptops screen, but never turn around to face a projected slide. Doing so will break eye contact and reduce the impact that you are able to make on the audience.
                                  • Speak slower. Many people speak too fast, as if they are afraid that someone might cut them off. Don't do that! Speak slower to demonstrate your confidence and to keep calm. As an added bonus, people in the audience will find it easier to understand what you say.
                                  • Smile. Even if you feel nervous, smile and pretend to be happy. It's odd but true - you will feel more comfortable if you smile.
                                  • Use vocal variety. No one wants to listen to a monotone presenter. It's boring. Varying your pitch keeps things lively and demonstrates your comfort. When something is important, say it louder than the rest of your words.
                              2. The Presentation Itself

                                Every company is going to have a different set of standards for what is expected in a status report. This section will address the commonalities that can be expected across most organizations.

                                1. The Introduction

                                  A strong opening is critical to a good presentation. It helps orient the audience to your topic. Jumping into the body of a presentation can be jarring to the audience. It will likely leave them wondering why you're speaking, rather then enticing them to listen to the contents of your report.

                                  1. Who Are You?

                                    This should be one of the simplest parts of the speech, but it's often one the most overlooked. At the beginning of your status report, you should make sure that you include:

                                    1. A general greeting. A simple "Good morning" or "good afternoon" is a very effective way to elicit their attention and to mark the fact that you are beginning your presentation.
                                    2. You name and role. Many speakers forget to mention their own names. A presentation in front of a number of managers is a great way to build your reputation. A status report isn't just about the project. It's a forum for you to become known to upper echelons of management. Remember, they can't promote you if they don't know who you are. Take credit for your great work! This doesn't have to be complicated. "My name is Franklin Johnson, financial analyst for the technology department" would be perfectly acceptable. It's short, to the point and gets your identity across.
                                    3. The project name and a very short explanation of its approach and purpose. Not everyone in the audience will be familiar with your work. Even if a project is very important to you, it may be a tiny item in a portfolio of projects being managed from above. A one sentence pitch for your project will help jog your audience's memory and possibly even elicit interest from other parties in the room. The key is to focus on the problem that will be solved, not on the project itself. Remember, it's not necessary to mention every little detail about your project. A brief highlight of the overall goal is often enough.

                                    Here are a few example introductions, each a bit better than the previous one:

                                    • I'm running the uniform project.

                                      This pitch is too general. An outsider would have no idea if the project dealt with standardizing technologies across a company, or changing the way people dress.

                                    • This is the status for the upgrade of the Army combat uniform.

                                      This pitch is a bit better. An outsider could probably make some guesses about the basic idea of the project. Unfortunately, the purpose of the project is still lost. Are we redesigning the uniforms to provide better camouflaging? Are we focusing only improving the longevity of the clothing? Are we focusing on reducing the itchiness caused by the blend of fibers in the clothing? There really is no way to know.

                                    • Today I'm presenting the status for the Army combat uniform upgrade. We're selecting a new camouflage pattern that blends more readily in jungle environments.

                                      This pitch is much stronger than the other two. In just two sentences, anyone in the audience would understand what work is being performed and why. There are missing details of course, but anyone in the audience would instantly know what was to be discussed and whether it is important to them.

                                    • Today I'm presenting the status for the Army combat uniform upgrade. We're selecting a new camouflage pattern that blends more readily in jungle environments and will help to reduce American combat deaths. This is the best so far. Not only does the audience understand the work, but he sees an immediate relevance. Simply allowing soldiers to hide in jungle environments is fine, but it's a means of achieving a goal for the Army - not a goal in and of itself. Don't be afraid to connect the dots and show the relevance and importance of your project.
                                  2. The Body

                                    This is the "meat" of your metaphorical "status report sandwich." You've laid the groundwork. At this point, everyone knows who you are and what project your going to be presenting.

                                    Now What?

                                    No need to panic, we'll be taking a look at the body of your presentation in depth.

                                    1. Report on What We've Done

                                      Have you ever heard the phrase you get an A for effort? Strike it from your memory!

                                      The world of work is a very different place than an elementary school's soccer team. In the real world, no one cares about effort, they care about results. One common method to track results is to write down a set of realistic goals and dates for achieving them. We call these collections of goals and dates milestones. Setting milestones publicly at the start of a project can be an excellent way to track the success of a project and is far more objective than having to resort to falling back to speaking about "effort".

                                      While the exact milestones that should be tracked for your project will vary, here are some of the most obvious:

                                      • Testing completion dates
                                      • Planning completion dates
                                      • Checkpoints at which major decisions are made
                                      • Levels of quality and a date at which they are achieved

                                      You'll almost certainly want to mention milestones that have been hit and those that have been missed (along with an explanation as to why they were missed). Whether your goals involve dollar savings, widgets produced, or a change in quality levels, you should report on how you are tracking against these goals. It's good to be able to say that we've finished about half of the work required for the project. It's much better to say that we've completed all necessary planning, have created the first prototypes and are now ready to enter full production within a week of the originally estimated date.

                                      Many project managers like to use burn down charts to demonstrate progress. They're simply line graphs that show how many units of work you have outstanding on the current project. The utility of this device will depend greatly upon the management strategy that you use for your project.

                                      An interesting point to note is that your attention should not be spread evenly over your past accomplishments. Your description of accomplishments should be more heavily weighted toward the most recent events. Your change in progress since the last time you've provided a status report is likely the part your audience cares most about. By the end of the project, happenings early in the project will be (and should be) a distant memory.

                                      1. Wait, There's More?

                                        A common rookie mistake is to think that status is all about the past. You also have to look to the future. Just as you looked at the past to describe progress, you can also use data to predict the status of the project in the future.

                                        If you don't, nasty surprises could be in store.

                                        Have you seen those old videos that were made before the airplane was invented? People would attach large wooden wings to their arms and jump out of a window, hoping that they would somehow be able to fly like birds.

                                        Let's pretend, for a moment, that you're one of those folks. You've just jumped out of a 20th-floor window and are providing a status report on your flying efforts so far. It would probably sound something like this:

                                        Project "learn to fly" is proceeding well. Supplies were purchased at estimated cost, construction required 10 hours of work (as expected). Flight is in progress and results will be reported at the next meeting."

                                        Everything seems great! But things are probably going to get much worse in the near future (when you hit the ground).

                                        One of your duties in a status report is to alert the audience about things that will happen. Sometimes, the audience will be able to help - perhaps they'll be able to drag a giant mattress under you to break your fall. Other times, you'll be able to make predictions to demonstrate that you understand where the project is heading and prove that your team is ready to deal with what might happen in the future.

                                        Problems that represent future trouble in the future are categorized into two basic categories.

                                        1. Issues

                                          An issue is an existing problem, or something that is guaranteed to be a future problem.

                                          If your project is to make a sandwich, and you don't have any bread, you have an issue. You know for a fact that you'll have to some money to buy bread in the future. Bread won't simply appear in your cabinet if you look again later. There is no bread, and you'll have to do something about about that if you're going to make a sandwich.

                                          An issue can be classified in only one way: severity. All issues will have an effect upon your project, it's just a matter of understanding how much of an effect each issue will cause. It goes without saying that more time should be spent discussing issues with high severity than those with a lesser severity.

                                          1. Risks

                                            Risks are potential problems.

                                            If your project is to make a sandwich, and you don't know if you have any bread, you have a risk - not an issue.

                                            You might have ten loaves of bread in the cupboard, but you might have none. When you go around your kitchen and look for bread, one of two things might happen. Either you'll find some bread (and the risk will go away), or you'll find out you have no bread (and the risk, now certain, will become an issue).

                                            Tracking risks before they become issues is critical. The earlier you can find a potential issue, the more time you and your managers will have to deal with the situation.

                                            A risk can be classified in two categories: severity and likelihood.

                                            Without a doubt, you will want to focus on discussing risks with relatively high potential for severity and high risk of occurrence. You'll want to spend a lot less (or perhaps no) time discussing very unlikely risks that probably won't occur.

                                            Yes, it's possible that progress writing a cookbook will be delayed if you are kidnapped by Martians, but I'm almost certain that a more worrisome risk would be that some of the recipes you've created will not be enjoyed by your test subjects.

                                            A risk can be dealt with in a few ways. Being able to describe your approach to dealing with a risk is crucial to explaining its effect on your project:

                                            • Accept the Risk

                                              Sometimes bad things happen, and there's nothing you can do about it. This is usually done if the severity of a problem is low and the likelihood is low and the cost to prevent it would be high. For instance, it's possible that a local coffee shop may have a risk that the price of electricity may go up next month. As electricity is a relatively small cost of the shop's overall budget, and it's difficult to stockpile energy, the shop owner would just accept the risk of energy price fluctuations.

                                            • Avoid the Risk

                                              Sometimes you'll be able to reduce the chance that a risk will occur. This is usually done if it would be relatively cheap to prevent the risk, compared to the cost of the risk occurring. A coffee shop owner may have found some possibly-spoiled mayonnaise. It could be served to customers, but there is a risk that it may cause customers to become sick. The manager can avoid the risk by throwing out the questionable mayonnaise.

                                            • Mitigate the Risk

                                              Sometimes you can reduce the severity of a risk. Suppose that a coffee shop is famous for the quality of its coffee. Unfortunately, excellent coffee beans are very expensive. There is a risk that if the owners choose to use less expensive coffee beans, customers may become upset and make fewer purchases. The owners could reduce the risk of upsetting customers by blending some of their high quality beans with a smaller amount of lower quality beans. Doing so would reduce the severity of risk, because the new version of the coffee wouldn't be quite as bad coffee made entirely of inferior beans.

                                            • Transfer the Risk

                                              Transferring a risk can be difficult to accomplish, but can be a very powerful tool for a project leader. It requires that someone else take responsibility for the risk, should it occur. Let's take another look at our coffee shop. There is a risk that some criminals will break in when the shop is closed and steal all of the equipment. Rather than worrying about this risk, the owners can buy some insurance. That way, if anything happens, the insurance company (and not the shop) will be on the hook for replacing whatever is stolen. In an office setting, it's often difficult to buy an insurance policy, but you may be able to get people on record to "guarantee" that they'll take care of certain problems, if they occur. For instance, a department manager may guarantee that his staff will be made available to you if his components prove faulty.

                                              Fun fact: many managers hire outside consultants, not because they need the consultants' expertise, but because it allows them to transfer risk to someone else. Ever hear the expressions No one was ever fired for choosing IBM? This is why IBM was chosen so much.
                                          2. Watch Your Language!

                                            A status report is not a poetry performance. It is a presentation of information that is both useful and actionable. As a rule, you should avoid colorful adverbs and adjectives like the plague. Focus on quantifiable measures instead. We spent $30,000 studying the issue, but are unable to find the cause leaves a lot less to the imagination than We worked as quickly as we could but despite our valiantly planned efforts, we were unable to solve the troubling issue.

                                            A few words to avoid:

                                            • Quickly
                                            • Cheaply
                                            • Safely
                                            • Rapidly
                                            • Efficiently

                                            Notice a common pattern? If a word ends in "ly" you should not be using it. Remember, "ly" words are imprecise, and precision is a goal for the status report. Try to come up with a sentence using an "ly" word and a number associated with that "ly" word. It's almost impossible!

                                            Here are some examples of words to that should be sprinkled all over your presentation:

                                            • Financial units: dollars, euros, pounds
                                            • Changes: percent complete, percent remaining
                                            • Time units: days, hours, weeks
                                            • Quantity measures: ounces, acres, feet
                                            • Ratios: quarters, thirds, tenths
                                            • Dates: January 17th, October 10th, February 2nd

                                            Your status should be described as objectively as possible, so if you're using units of measures, you're probably on the right track.

                                            1. Avoid Technospeak and Acronyms

                                              As the person delivering the status report, you may feel the need to demonstrate that you know more about the work being performed than anyone else in the room.

                                              While this type of thinking is understandable, it should be avoided at all costs. You should focus on making your report understandable. Anyone can take a simple idea and make it sound complex, but a truly great speaker can take a complex idea and boil it down to its simplest parts. That means not utilizing technobabble, uncommon acronyms or overly technical language. If someone in the audience can't follow what you're saying, the fault is yours - not theirs.

                                              1. Sugarcoating Is for Cereal Only

                                                Above all, you report must be an honest assessment of your project. You must be honest about problems and weaknesses.

                                                One of the great things about providing an honest assessment of problems is that (especially if there is a written record), you'll have a get-out-of-jail card. Early warnings are a way of transferring risks from you to your managers. As an added bonus, if you and your team are able to solve problems presented in earlier status reports, you can earn congratulations and goodwill for your problem-solving abilities. Fixing a problem that no managers had ever heard about will result in considerably less praise from above.

                                                1. Don't Go into the Weeds

                                                  The higher your audience is in the management chain, the less interested they'll be in the minute details of your project. Attention is finite, and the higher up in the management hierarchy, the more widely a manager's attention is spread. Imagine the following situation at the White house:

                                                  • A gardener might report to the gardening supervisor that there are areas containing weeds in front of the side door, the vegetable garden and the driveway.
                                                  • The gardening supervisor might report to the operations manager that his team has identified a few locations with weeds.
                                                  • The operations manager might report to his manager that the grounds staff is caring for the grounds, as usual.
                                                  • What do you think the President is going to want to know about the weed condition at the White House? Nothing. The president has better things to do than to worry about the weeds.
                                                  1. Highlight Project Constraints

                                                    Project managers typically focus on the triple constraint:

                                                    • Cost - how much the end product will cost
                                                    • Scope - the definition of what is being created (as well as its level of quality!)
                                                    • Time - how long the project will take

                                                    Typically when one or two of the constraints are not allowed to change, the third will fluctuate throughout the project. One way to add real value to your status report is to point out possible trade-offs between the constraints. As an example, let's say that you're a chef at a restaurant. The restaurant owner demands that you cook 10 filet mignon dinners in one hour for a total cost of $50.

                                                    You've just been given an impossible task! Not only that, but all three parts of the triple constraint are fixed (almost always a sign of a doomed project). You have two options.

                                                    1. You can try your best to accomplish the task, knowing that you will almost certainly fail. Many novice project leads will do this, in an attempt to "tow the company line" and demonstrate the fact that they are willing to do whatever work is assigned to the best of their ability. Unfortunately, while such actions may appease upper managers at the start of a project, managers tend to become unhappy when their projects inevitably fail later on.
                                                    2. You can point out the impossibility of the task and help managers figure out trade-offs that are the least unpalatable. In the case of our cook, he can think of alternative meals which are less costly to produce. Maybe ten filet mignon dishes can't be cooked for $50, but ten pasta dishes certainly could. Even if you can't convince management of a specific trade-off, just reminding them that trade-offs exist can help them to start thinking about other trade-offs that could be made.
                                                    1. Using RAG Charts

                                                      Many managers are familiar with "RAG" charts (RAG stands for the three colors that are used: red, amber and green). It's a simple system that explains the status of a project by color. The exact rating system is highly dependent upon the organization, but is generally straight forward.

                                                      Here are the most commonly rated aspects of projects:

                                                      • Cost
                                                      • Schedule
                                                      • Scope
                                                      • Quality
                                                      • Resource availability

                                                      Each item above is typically evaluated by standardized criteria and a colored dot is displayed next to each one.

                                                      • If the characteristic is at or above desired levels, a green dot is displayed.
                                                      • If there are some problems or potential problems, but the result isn't terrible, an amber dot is displayed.
                                                      • If there are significant problems or potential problems, a red dot is displayed.

                                                      If you use this system, please make sure that your status slides are understandable, even when printed in black and white. I can't tell you how many times I've seen people take beautiful handouts and print them on black and white printers. I've also run into a number of color blind managers in recent years. Utilizing a standardized evaluation such as "On Target", "Low Risk" and "High Risk", each printed in the appropriate color is preferable to simply using colored dots.

                                                      1. Improving the RAG Chart

                                                        Although RAG Charts can be used to display the current project outlook, they have one terrible downfall. They act only as a snapshot in time.

                                                        It is much more useful to display trends in your reports. Doing so will help demonstrate your successes and highlight the importance of your concerns. One effective means to do this is to create a line graph with "date" on the horizontal axis and "level of concern" on the vertical. Though not standard, these charts will be simple for your audience to understand.

                                                        1. Miscellaneous Tips

                                                          1. Reporting on Projects of Different Sizes

                                                            When you study a bacterium, you use a microscope. When you study a postage stamp, you use a magnifying glass. When you study a distant star, you use a telescope.

                                                            The odd thing is that each of these items being studied is of vastly different size, but viewed with the correct tool, they all appear to be of similar dimensions to the viewer. When writing reports for differently sized projects, you need to tailor your reporting system accordingly.

                                                            1. Reporting on Projects of Different Levels of Importance

                                                              If you are asked about the status of cleaning a small stock room, you might be able to get away with "I cleaned the room, it looks great." If you are asked about the dismantling of a nuclear stockpile, hearing "We're did it, everything is great" will probably be met with significantly less fanfare. The more important the project, the less leeway will be given for sloppy reporting. Under no circumstance should any person believe that what proved acceptable on less consequential endeavors can be repeated for vitally important work.

                                                              1. Understand the Boundaries of Your Project

                                                                Keep your ears open, and you'll no doubt hear about other projects that will be affected by your own. If you can identify some interactions between your project (positive or negative) and another, you can demonstrate your strategic thinking and build a positive reputation by reporting upon those interactions.

                                                            2. The Conclusion

                                                              Your ending is critical to your speech. It's the part the wraps everything in a nice bow and demonstrates your strength as a presenter. It's also the part that almost no one prepares properly. You know how a terrible ending can make or break an entire movie? The same concept applies to presentations.

                                                              Don't simply end with that's all I have. You should be able to summarize your report quickly and efficiently, pushing your biggest concern into the forefront of their minds. Your conclusion should be direct, to the point, and built around a single sentence. Chances are, that one sentence will be a variation on one of the following:

                                                              1. The project is proceeding at or above the original goals, and no major problems are known or expected
                                                              2. The project is proceeding at or above the original goals. We've identified some problems, but we are working to correct them.
                                                              3. The project is facing severe difficulties and will require some help.

                                                              Remember, you are not there to make your project look good. You are there to present an objective, trustworthy analysis.

                                                              1. Questions & Answers

                                                                Arguably the most important (and scariest) part of a status presentation occurs after the planned portion is complete. You are almost certain to receive a few questions. There are several reasons for this, some of which have absolutely nothing to do with your project at all. Understanding the motivation behind each question will clue you in to how it should be addressed.

                                                                Here are the most common reasons for questions:

                                                                • An audience member is missing some information he thinks is important. Either you stated the information and he missed it, you knew the information, but didn't think it was important, or you don't know the answer. The last of the three will hopefully be rare. Your answer should either be the information in question, or a promise to provide a detailed answer at a later date. Do not guess the answer if you don't know the answer.
                                                                • An audience member has interests that are tangential to the project. It's possible that your project may affect another project being run by another party. Some people may want to better understand this interaction, even if it's not an important aspect of your own project.
                                                                • An audience member wants to demonstrate his authority, credibility or knowledge. He may ask a detailed question to demonstrate his knowledge of your area, without actually caring about your response. This is a common tactic used by new managers, who fear being seen as "just a manager."
                                                                • An audience member wants to know where your information came from. Many projects look like they are going well but then suddenly flounders. One obvious cause is team members who give overly rosy estimates and analyses that are not based upon facts. When presenting information and answering questions, it is vital that you can articulate not only the information requested, but be able to defend the methodology used to produce that information.

                                                                Tracking the types of questions that you and other presenters are ask can be extremely useful. You'll have a better idea of what types of questions will be asked in the future. Because question and answer sessions have a tendency to fade from memory, it is highly advisable to keep a record of what occurs as others are presenting.

                                                                1. You Don't Have Every Answer

                                                                  It can be very tempting to look like you've got everything under control, so you may feel pressured to make guesses. Don't fall into that trap! It's possible that you'll guess wrong, or base your answer on incomplete information. This may lead to directives from above that are catastrophic for your project.

                                                                  If you are unsure as to the correct answer, it can be much safer to promise an answer at a later date, or to merely discuss the method by which you will discover the answer.

                                                                  1. Treat all Questions as Important

                                                                    Don't dismiss any question, no matter how irrelevant or stupid you may think it is. Do not get defensive, as this may invite an audience member to attempt to show his dominance or invite future bad will.

                                                                    • Is your team even trying to complete this?
                                                                    • Couldn't a monkey have completed this already?
                                                                    • When are you going to finish this, in a thousand years?

                                                                    A good response to any of the above could be "I understand exactly where your comments are coming from." In fact, before any answers are provided, it is a good idea to remark about the high quality of each question. Not only is doing so polite, but it provides a bit of extra time to think and compose your answer.

                                                                    1. Sample Questions & Answers

                                                                      It takes a bit of practice to receive difficult questions and stay calm. Here are a few examples of difficult questions and sample answers for each.

                                                                      • Can't you simply work harder to get this done on time? That's a great question. We all understand how important this project is, but we're already driving the staff very hard. Key staff members have already been working significant amounts of overtime. Asking them to work harder would likely cause them to consider other employment opportunities. Additionally, bringing on additional staff would require a significant and costly training ramp up.
                                                                      • Have you accounted for vacation periods in your time estimates?

                                                                        Great question. I'm not aware of any significant vacations being requested by my team. As you know, springtime tends to be a light period in terms of people taking time off, but I will check with my team and provide you with an up to date answer.

                                                                      • Why did you allow resources to be reallocated to other projects?

                                                                        Excellent question. Back in August, the decision was made by senior managers that support of the new software development effort had a higher priority for the business, as it would bring in additional profit. Of course, if the decision is reversed, I'd be able to utilize additional resources immediately.

                                                                      • How do you know that your project is going to finish on time when you've missed all of your milestones so far?

                                                                        That's a fair question, and I'm glad you asked it. Here are two pieces of evidence which support my analysis:

                                                                        As you can see on our schedule, we missed the first milestone by 2 months, the second milestone by 1 month and the third milestone by only 2 weeks. We're clearly catching up to the original schedule.

                                                                        Also, most of the tasks we're performing are very routine, and we're getting much better at completing them. When we started, we weren't very experienced in the work being performed. Over the past few months, we've learned a lot and have developed formal procedures that our team can follow. We no longer have to figure out problems that we've faced before, we can just look at our written instructions and apply them to whatever problem we face.

                                                                      • Won't your project continue to go over budget by larger and larger amounts?

                                                                        I understand your concerns. The nature of our project involved a lot of original research. The risk of overruns was noted early in the project planning phase. That being said, we've completed the research portion of the project and the remaining work will be much more predictable, because it will simply involve traditional manufacturing processes.

                                                                      • Is there anything else we should know? I've provided a summary of where we stand to the best of my abilities, but I will be sure to update you as more information becomes available.
                                                                  2. Example Status Reports

                                                                    Below are examples of status reports for two projects. It is important to note that they are not tailored to your particular organization. It should also be noted that the examples are exceedingly short, intended to be illustrative in nature.

                                                                    1. A Successful Project

                                                                      Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Harold Johnson, lead analyst for the desktop computer upgrade project. We're upgrading the operating systems on 600 computers in our office so that they can run the latest architectural design software.

                                                                      In the past month since our last report, we have upgraded 200 additional computers, bringing our total number of upgraded computers to 400. At this rate, we should be complete in thirty more days, exactly on target to the original plan.

                                                                      Our original budget was $60,000 for the project (which works out to $100 per computer), and we've spent only half of that ($30,000 to upgrade 400 computers). This means that we're only spending $75 to upgrade each computer. If we can keep this up, we'll be $15,000 under budget.

                                                                      There are currently no significant risks facing this project. There was some concern that performing the upgrades during working hours would cause significant complaints from the architects, but we have heard no complaints thus far.

                                                                      All indications are that we'll complete the project both on time and on budget, in time for our busy season in June.

                                                                      1. An Unsuccessful Project

                                                                        Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Harold Johnson, lead analyst for the desktop computer upgrade project. We're upgrading the operating systems on 600 computers in our office so that they can run the latest architectural design software.

                                                                        Over the past month we've upgraded the first 43 computers with the new operating systems, for a total of 60 so far. As you can tell from our numbers, we're facing some significant problems.

                                                                        The biggest issues are:

                                                                        1. The inability to upgrade systems during business hours. Because of the internal audit being conducted by corporate security, we've had to have our staff perform the upgrades during the weekends. This has led to increased overtime costs, raising our estimated price of upgrading each system from $100 to $150.
                                                                        2. Lack of resources to perform upgrades. As you know, most of my staff (including Bob, who has performed these upgrades before and is something of an expert) have been allocated to other projects with higher business priorities. This lack of expertise on our team, combined with fewer staff members has meant that our progress has been slowed. Instead of our original deadline of June 3rd, a more realistic estimate would be August 10th.

                                                                        As we've discussed, there are a few options that my team has come up with to address these issues. We can delay the project by two months, which will allow enough time for the security audit to be performed. By that time, I will have more staff to conduct the work, and we'll be able to upgrade the computers during the workday. We estimate that this will bring our budget back into alignment with our original estimates and allow us to finish by September 10th, only three months behind schedule.

                                                                        Another option we can look at is to prioritize the most important computers, ensuring that critical systems are updated now, and less critical systems updated at a later date.

                                                                        Even though we won't be able to meet our original objectives, with a few tweaks, we'll be able to achieve the majority of our goals and complete the remaining upgrades at a later date.

                                                                      2. Final Words

                                                                        If you've read through this entire document, you have everything you need to present a fantastic status report. Congratulations!

                                                                        If you have any comments suggestions or questions, please contact me so that they can be addressed.