The best way to coordinate your parties involved throughout the project is with an effective project progress report. These routine updates keep your team updated on the project’s progress. Thus, you take the positions and can correct the shot if necessary to avoid missing any deadlines. Learn how to create a project progress report in a few easy steps and take advantage of an already-made template.
To keep everyone on the same page, identify risks in a proactive manner, stay on track, and adhere to the budget, it is essential to update your team on the project’s progress. However, compiling this information from various sources is a crucial component of “work about work,” those minute, repetitive tasks that slow down larger, higher-value tasks.
Why use email for a project status update?
Sending project updates via email is common practice because it’s typically the primary form of communication in a company, though you can use whichever method your company prefers. Email is a handy format for attaching files, using templates, and including links to websites. The following are some benefits of sending your project status update via email:
What is a project status update email?
A project status update email is a document that you send on a regular basis that contains pertinent details about the status of a project. Sending a project status update email fosters ownership and accountability among the project team, ensures that everyone is on track with the project’s objectives, and identifies any problems or project risks. A project status update email for the client lets them know how things are going and gives them the chance to ask additional questions about things like timeline and budget.
What to include in a project status update email
You may share various pieces of information with various audiences depending on the specifics of each project. However, it’s typical to see some fundamental details in a project status update email, such as:
Here are some optional topics that you could also include in your project status update email, depending on your particular project and the audience you’re addressing:
Project status update email best practices
Depending on the organization, type of project, and recipient, each email containing a project status update will be unique. But there are some general pointers that apply to all project status update emails, such as:
How to create a project status update email
Here are the steps for creating a project status update email now that you are aware of what it is and what should be in it:
1. Gather information
Gather all the details you want to include in your project status update email before you start. This information may come from the client, reports, project management software, team members, management, or other sources. In order to have a thorough understanding of all the various facets of the project’s current state, consider both more general topics like the project timeline and upcoming important dates and more specific topics like the financial details of the budget.
2. Find or create a template
Look for a status report template that you can customize to meet your needs or that is already in use. You can also make your own unique template that matches your preferences and the details you want to share. If you intend to send various groups of people various pieces of information, having multiple templates may be useful. In order for recipients to know where to find important information in each email, try to consistently use the template you create.
3. Consider your audience and purpose
Tailor status reports to the audience receiving them. Depending on your project’s nature and the recipients of the update, you will decide which subjects to cover in your project status update. A project status update email sent to clients may contain information that is very different from that sent to the manager or stakeholders. What details you decide to include may also vary depending on how frequently you send the project status update. A weekly update, for instance, might not have as much information as a quarterly update.
4. Work on an outline
Start with an outline for your first email with a progress status update. To organize your thoughts and make sure you have specific sections for the information you want to include, go through each topic in your template and write a few words in each one.
5. Draft and edit
Write the first draft of your progress status update email. Try to take a break after finishing the first draft so you can come back to it with fresh eyes. Next, check your email for mistakes, double-check the information, and attach any documents or links.
6. Send it at the right time
In order for recipients to know when to expect your emails, try to send them at roughly the same time each day or week. Sending the email in advance of the meeting might be useful if you have daily standups or weekly update meetings so that everyone has the same information to discuss. You could also draft your update while the group is in session and send it later so everyone has a summary to refer to.
Project status update email samples
Here are two illustrations of how a project status update email might appear:
Example 1
Report name:
Website Launch
Project status:
On track
Summary:
The concept team has completed the concept phase. The design and content teams are now beginning work on the following stage.
Design:
Content:
Challenges:
The team has addressed these issues and should have them resolved by the end of the week, despite the fact that there have been some problems with the rights to the website URL address.
Additional notes:
Example 2
Project timeline completion status:
Budget status:
The budget is currently on track with the long-term objectives. 71% of the budget was spent on the project, and 29% is still available.
What happened last week:
Whats happening this week:
Action items:
Project Management Status Reports [WHAT TO INCLUDE]
FAQ
How do you write a project update email?
- Gather information. Gather all the details you want to include in your project status update email before you start.
- Find or create a template. …
- Consider your audience and purpose. …
- Work on an outline. …
- Draft and edit. …
- Send it at the right time.
How do you politely ask for a status update in an email?
- Build your report where work lives. …
- Name your report. …
- Indicate project health. …
- Quickly summarize the status report. …
- Add a high-level overview of each key area. …
- Add links to other documents or resources. …
- Flag any blockers the project has run into. …
- Highlight next steps.
