Definition of project essay
We record the initiator writing a project essay in which goals, visions, and the subject of the project are in the preparatory phase of a project. The project essay should serve as a template for the new project and therefore be of the maximum quality. Even in agile project management forms, we should place value on a good essay, as clearly defined goals.
How to write a project management report
A project management report is a summarized overview of the current status of the project. It serves as formal evidence of the status of a project at a specific point in time. (The exact form and information contained will depend on the needs of your company and your project management office, as many companies now have their own templates that all their project managers must adhere to.) Depending on the size and complexity of your project, the project management report weekly or monthly. It informs all available stakeholders of the project to inform them about the project’s progress and any urgent challenges. Most project management reports are only one page long but can contain attachments or links so that recipients can view more detailed information if necessary. However, in certain circumstances, the reports can be much larger.
What is in a project management report?
Project management reports should include the following important information for every company, every industry, and every type of project:
All information needed to identify the project:
– Project name
– Project number (if there is one)
– Name of the project manager
– Project sponsor
– Project start date
– Estimated end date
– Customer name and data
– Publication date of the report
The most important key figures for project success:
– Progress versus plan. Is the project on schedule or is it behind schedule?
– Current costs versus budget. Are you on a budget or above?
– Current scope compared to plan. Has the scope changed since the start of the project? If yes how?
– WE actually need to compare resources to the plan. Resources allocation or missing check.
– An overview of the risks. High risks measurement.
– Current findings on quality. Did we check the quality? There were problems?
Additional information required:
1. Management of project changes. This is usually an update on pending and approved change requests for the project.
2. Actions are taken. This is a rough summary of the main actions and decisions that have been taken since the last report. It can also include accomplishments, such as milestones recently achieved.
3. Required decisions. When an important decision comes up, it often describes what the decision is about, who it depends on, and when it is due. An example would be the approval of the project management plan by a sponsor.
4. Upcoming milestones. Services and milestones that are due soon can be listed to draw attention to them.
How to write a project management report
When writing a project management report, here are some things to keep in mind:
- Keep it short and inform about results. Avoid details that are irrelevant to your stakeholders. Try to use bullet points instead of paragraphs. If you create a ten-page document every week, chances are nobody will read it and you won’t have enough time to manage the project.
- Remember who the target audience is. Make sure that the report is not too technical and only contains technical terms. Otherwise your stakeholders will not understand.
- Provide context. Instead of simply saying that a service to be performed is two weeks behind schedule, you should state how this will affect the rest of the project and what countermeasures will be taken. Stakeholders need to know how big a problem really is.
- Clearly state what you need. If one of your stakeholders has to do something for you, explicitly state who is responsible, what they are responsible for and by when the task needs to be done.
- Make use of visual content. Use project management software that provides templates for project management reports . Then stakeholders can quickly see which projects are having problems in which areas before they read the report more closely. Executives may get dozens (or more) of reports each week. It is therefore important that the reports are easy to read.
