When a company initiates a new project, it needs to be aware of how the project is progressing, what findings and decisions are being made by the project team, and what needs to be improved. In order to provide the company’s supervisors with such information, progress reports are usually written. Generally speaking, a progress report is an update on a project’s status. A well-written progress report is beneficial both for the company and for you. The company gets accurate real-time information and you can count on adequate staffing and financial assistance with the project you are working on. If you need help, you can find a write my essay free to assist you in creating a quality progress report.
Steps for Writing a Progress Report
Compiling a progress report might not be easy. You can try and find some samples on the internet before starting your own work. Reading through a top essay writing service reviews can also help – they usually mention a platform that can provide similar examples. Then you can start your writing, following the next procedure:
- Write the heading of your progress report. This usually contains the date, when the report was submitted, the name and the position of the recipient, the writer’s name and position, and the subject of the report.
- Compose the introductory section. In this part, you must brief about the project. Then, you should provide readers with information about the project’s purpose, clarify its timescale, and remind readers about other important details.
- Write the “work completed” section. In this section, you must describe what work has already been done. One of the best ways to do this is to order the completed tasks chronologically. Make two columns. In one of them, specify dates and in another one, specify tasks you and your team were working on. Information about key findings should also be included in the “work completed” section.
- In the next section, specify the problems your team encountered while working on the project. Provide explanations of how you solved them or how you are planning to do it. Also, describe any changes caused by these problems and state whether any assistance on the project is required.
- Provide your supervisors with information about how you are planning to move forward with the project. Make an outline of future tasks that need to be accomplished during a certain period. Specify dates that will be deadlines for the tasks.
- Summarize your progress report. In the summary section, you should only give the most essential details about the completed and to-do work. Also, include a short description of problems your team encountered and recommendations for their correction.
Topic Selection
The topic of a progress report is usually determined by recent work you and your team have done. However, when composing a progress report, each time you schedule your work and outline tasks for the next period of time, you assign topics for your next reporting document.
Key Points to Consider
- Progress reports come in different formats, such as a brief verbal report, a periodic email sent to your supervisors, a memo, or a formal written report with a clearly-defined structure. Internal progress reports can be submitted in memo format, while reports from one external organization to another can take the form of a business letter.
- Progress reports not only inform supervisors about a project’s status, but they also affect the decision-making process. A company’s management may revise, adjust or change their decisions according to a particular situation with the project.
- A progress report should be project-centered, which means it should refer to the work done by your team and not to the plans or expectations of your supervisors.
- A progress report should be simple and concise. Avoid writing lengthy, dense documents. In most cases, a progress report is submitted on 2-3 pages.
- A progress report not only provides decision-makers with necessary information, but it also shows them what kind of specialist you are.
Do and Don’t
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Common Mistakes When Writing a Progress Report
– Using expressive words and phrases to characterize the situation. Describing a project’s status as a “complete catastrophe” or a “giddy success” is too vague and won’t be of use for supervisors.
– Being irregular with sending progress reports to supervisors. Most likely, they will expect you to send reports in equal time intervals.
– Glossing over problems and understating their prevalence, hoping to solve them secretly. Always provide adequate and honest information about all issues that occur during the work on the project.
– Turning a progress report into a lengthy document. Don’t supersaturate the document with excessive details, research digests, calculations, and so on.
Now that you have acquainted yourself with the basic progress report essay writing tips and rules, you can check out our progress report samples to link theory with practice.
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