Project Report Updates

00:02 Welcome back to execution.

00:04 Although, technically, we didn't really leave.

00:08 There would be no monitoring and control phase if we weren't executing simultaneously.

00:13 But anyway, as we near the end of the execution phase, you may start thinking that this project is your baby.

00:21 Well, in a way it is.

00:23 But you're like a well trained babysitter or nursery teacher.

00:27 This baby still has parents that need to be updated on its progress and status, also known as project stakeholders and sponsors.

00:37 And as teachers need to carefully plan reports on all aspects of a child's development for its parents, so do you for the project sponsor and stakeholders.

00:47 Let's look into how to do that.

00:52 There are two main reasons for regular status reporting.

00:55 The first step is to keep the sponsor and senior stakeholders informed with how everything is progressing and to highlight any issues of key interest.

01:03 The second is to keep things in order.

01:05 Projects can involve many different people, and this can easily lead to confusion and misunderstandings. To avoid inefficiencies, the project manager must keep up structured communication and coordination.

01:18 Chaos can be avoided if everyone gets all the same information.

01:25 To ET this you must agree on how the status reports and meetings will be delivered during the kick off meeting.

01:31 Things like the frequency of meetings, the participants and the standard agenda.

01:36 So let's have a look at what a weekly update could look like.

01:42 Powerpoint is the project manager's best friend at a time like this.

01:45 A presentation slide is more engaging than a plain list of details, and it keeps the focus on what the project manager wants to talk about.

01:53 So we start with a cover page stating the project name.

01:56 Simple enough, right? Then comes an agenda slide topics for the meeting, meeting, information, location, teleconference, number, date and time, that kind of thing.

02:08 Timelines can also be added here.

02:11 After that, a look at the Gantt-Chart milestone table and high level status as a quick reference for people to see where the project is going.

02:20 The project status can be indicated with a red, amber, green scale.

02:24 Green means that everything is on schedule, on budget, and within the scope and quality requirements. All is good to continue.

02:34 Amber means that there are issues that put the completion at risk, but the team can or already has acted to get things back on track.

02:42 Red is when things have gotten bad.

02:45 Overspending or goals not being met mean that the project manager needs to reach out to the sponsor and stakeholders for support, perhaps even rethinking the project plan and or rebalancing the triple constraint.

02:59 This is one of the most important things going into the meeting so everyone knows what to expect for the rest of it.

03:05 Is it a report on how things are going? Swimmingly. Is it a meeting to convince everyone how the team is going to make the project work? Or is it a meeting to reassess and come up with actions to save the project? The project manager decides the status of the project and can use it tactically to highlight any issues that may become a big problem if not addressed.

03:26 Once a high level status has been determined, the meeting can head into individual workstreams for detailed updates.

03:34 Let's look at the workstreams for our Lamborarri project.

03:38 For each dream, you or this stream owner can present updates and any challenges or risks, and you will present the schedules and actual data recorded so far. When reviewing each stream, you must be able to compare the situation to project constraints.

03:54 After that, it's time to review the risks.

03:57 Have any open risks? Change their status? Are any risks becoming more likely or dangerous? Do we need to trigger a contingency plan? Are there any new risks we need to record? You and the project team need to answer these questions and record them accordingly.

04:15 So there we have it.

04:16 This is an example of a core template.

04:19 Of course, every project and even every meeting will have its own specific differences. But what we have just discussed are points that will occur in almost every meeting. And you as project manager will be the one to decide where the focus should lie.

04:34 Excellent. So this brings us to the end of the execution phase.

04:39 In terms of the course, I mean.

04:42 Because in project management, the execution phase is like a turning circle.

04:46 The project manager oversees the execution, monitoring and controlling it by comparing the actual data to the target.

04:53 Then they report their findings and the overall project status to the stakeholders.

04:58 Execution, monitoring and control.

05:00 Then reporting.

05:02 But what next? Well, it's the following week and the process goes around again and again and again until the project is complete.

05:12 And that's it. The wheel turns all the way to the end of the project.

05:16 A nice, smooth ride.

05:19 But could it really be that simple? Well, it seems you've learned the effects of the optimism bias and that things don't always go that smoothly.

05:31 Well done. What if your actuals deviate massively from the plan? What will you do? Join us next lesson where we'll show you some methods on how to deal with issues during execution.

05:43 Thanks for watching.