All tools › Project status report
The tool · project delivery
Project status report
Health at a glance
rate each area on its ownDone since last report
accomplishments, not activityComing up next
what the reader should expectRisks and issues worth the reader’s time
top three, not all of themDecisions needed from you
the reason executives read theseWhat makes a status report worth reading
Rate schedule, budget, scope, and risk separately. A project can be green on time and red on budget; one overall light hides that.
Amber means something. If everything is always amber, nothing is; amber is "will go red unless the named thing happens."
Lead with decisions needed. Executives skim; the ask should not be on line forty.
One page. The second page is where status reports go to be unread.
Send it on a cadence, even when nothing changed. A skipped report reads as a hidden problem, and the week you most want to skip is the week the reader most wants it.
Print or save as PDF and it is the report you send. Everything saves in this browser only.
Prefer paper? Download the blank sheet as a PDF. The thinking behind it, and the nine tools it works with, is in The Project.
General guidance from practice, not legal, HR, or financial advice. Everything you type stays in this browser and is never sent to a server.