Many novice project management professionals make the common mistake of trying to squeeze an entire Gantt chart into a weekly or monthly issues status report. In actuality, effective status reports communicate small amounts of highly important information. By filtering the overall project status into a handful of key items, managers can make a bigger impact and bring more focus to their teams.
Vital information to include in an issues status report includes:
organization if the issue remains unresolved, and
Most experts agree that influential status reports also engage readers by highlighting:
Deciding the content of an issues status report often becomes an exercise in diplomatic communication. Some project management professionals have found success by tailoring their reports to meet the needs of their audiences. For instance, a regular working group of team leaders and project stakeholders that attends a status meeting should receive a comprehensive report of the most pressing issues that require their attention.
Company directors and other personnel that have little hands-on involvement with day-to-day activity can receive a version of the report that highlights solutions instead of simply presenting problems. Line workers might receive drilled-down reports that focus only on their areas of involvement. Knowing the intended audience for an issues status report can keep the right people focused on the project elements that they can actually influence.
Most project management experts agree that an issues status report longer than three-fourths of a page becomes less effective with each additional line. Project sponsors, major stakeholders, and team leaders with little spare time will
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