Calliope - Project progress reports

Determining audience

Decide whom the project progress report should go to.

Your city will be celebrating its 1000-year anniversary in one year. You were elected by the city council six years ago to lead a major project to get the city ready for the anniversary. The project includes the construction of several new buildings and a new stadium, the renovation of many city landmarks, and the renovation of the city's rail system. The planning of the events for the celebration is being managed by another project manager.

The city council has given you a specific budget that they don't want to increase, and so far you have stayed on budget. But they seem dissatisfied with the progress they see. They want the changes and the events to be spectacular and to be impressive to the media and neighboring regions. They feel that the success of this anniversary project will increase their influence in their country's politics since it will prove that they are a progressive, well-run, economically stable city. The city council will also be more likely to be re-elected if the anniversary project is a success. Thus even if you think the project is going well, the city council will be hard to please.

Many occupants of the buildings that are being renovated have complained that their businesses and day-to-day activities are being disrupted and feel that too much money is being spent simply for show, while the businesses that are crucial to the city are being neglected. However the reaction to the project among the general public in the city is positive. City residents are optimistic and excited to see the progress.

Your building contractors generally work well as a team and communicate well to you as the project manager. However the stadium construction is six-month's behind schedule, and the building contractor is asking for more resources to complete the project on time. Your event planners are relying on the completion of the stadium for the final ceremony.

Listed below are the project stakeholders and project progress report elements.

Which stakeholders should get a report?
Of the information listed on the right, which information should each stakeholder get?

Stakeholders	Elements
City council City residents Stadium building contractor Other building contractors Architects Occupants of buildings that are being renovated Project manager for celebration Public relations manager Tourists	Project ID Reporting Period Planned Budget Expended Budget Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Project Description Project Manager Project Sponsor Team Members Released Team Members Projected Releases Milestones Accomplishments Project Goals Changes Implemented Issues Risks Change Requests

City council Project ID Reporting Period Planned Budget Expended Budget Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Milestones Accomplishments Risks Change Requests	Stadium building contractor Project ID Reporting Period Planned Budget Expended Budget Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Team Members Released Team Members Projected Releases Milestones Accomplishments Projected Goals Changes Implemented Issues Risks Change Requests
Other building contractors Project ID Reporting Period Planned Budget Expended Budget Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Team Members Released Team Members Projected Releases Milestones Accomplishments Projected Goals Changes Implemented Issues Risks Change Requests	Project manager for celebration Project ID Reporting Period Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Team Members Released Team Members Projected Releases Milestones Accomplishments Projected Goals Risks Change Requests
Architects Project ID Reporting Period Planned Budget Expended Budget Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Milestones Accomplishments Projected Goals Changes Implemented Issues Risks Change Requests	Occupants of buildings that are being renovated Project ID Reporting Period Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Milestones Accomplishments Projected Goals
Public relations manager Project ID Reporting Period Schedule Status Projected Completion Date Milestones Accomplishments Projected Goals Risks Change Requests	City residents & Tourists No report

City council

A detailed project progress report should be distributed to the city council. In their report, you may want to include a detailed list of the milestones and accomplishments that have been completed to highlight the good work that has been done and the cost of that work. The report also needs to say that there is a risk of the stadium not being completed without additional resources. Finally the report needs to be specific about change requests for mitigating the risk of the stadium not being completed.

Stadium building contractor

The building contractor needs to know the status of the budget so he can plan accordingly. He may also need to know what team members may be available to help him get back on schedule, he should have a detailed status of team members. He would also need to see details about the rest of the project so he knows how his tasks and the progress of the stadium are affecting other aspects of the project. Finally he should see what you are reporting to other people on the project so he knows what you're reporting to others and what others expect of him.

Other building contractors

The other contractors could receive the same information as the stadium building contractor to keep them all updated and to communicate the same information to all of them.

Architects

It would be helpful for the architects to get detailed information about how the project is progressing so that they can plan for future projects. For example, the details about the stadium construction could help them in their designs and estimates for other similar construction projects.

Building occupants

The report for the occupants would highlight the milestones that have been accomplished to show how much substantive work has been done, and it could show specific completion dates for different parts of the project so that the occupants could make plans for their businesses accordingly.

Project manager of other project

The project manager for the celebration project needs a report that shows specific completion dates and specifies the risks to the stadium completion and what is being done to mitigate them. The other project manager may be able to help mitigate the risks, and she definitely needs to have a risk mitigation plan ready for her own project in case the stadium isn't done in time. This report may also indicate which personnel resources may be available so that the other project manager can use them if needed.

Public relations manager

Though the public relations manager won't necessarily share the changes, issues and risks with the public, she needs to know what they are so she is prepared to address them in case they become visible to the public. She will want to be the first to inform the public if there are problems.

City residents and tourists

The type of information contained in a project progress report is typically too detailed for the public. The public relations manager works with the press to distribute information to the public about the status of the project.

Tip

You could also use other forms of communication for the same purposes, and other forms of communication may be more effective in different situations and for different audiences. The project progress report is effective for two reasons: 1) It communicates project progress and project needs on a consistent basis so that your stakeholders have something to rely on. 2) It provides a way for you to give a positive impression of your project without using obvious propaganda.

	Theory
1.	Elements

	Key
1.	Key (print)