Progress Report: How to Track and Communicate Project Status

Keep stakeholders informed with clear, actionable progress reports that drive decisions

• 9 min read

The Essential Elements

Executive Summary

3-4 sentences covering status, key wins, blockers, and next steps.

Progress Metrics

Velocity, completion rate, burndown, or other relevant KPIs.

Completed This Period

Specific deliverables and achievements with business impact.

Risks & Blockers

What could derail progress and what you are doing about it.

Next Period Focus

Key priorities and expected outcomes for the coming sprint/period.

Support Needed

Specific asks from stakeholders or other teams.

Visual Progress Indicators

  • Traffic Light System: Green (on track), Yellow (at risk), Red (off track)
  • Burndown Charts: Show work remaining vs. time
  • Velocity Trends: Track team capacity and consistency
  • Milestone Timeline: Visual representation of key dates and dependencies
  • Risk Heat Map: Probability vs. impact matrix for identified risks

Writing for Your Audience

For Executives

Focus on business impact, strategic alignment, and resource needs. Keep it high-level and decision-oriented.

For Product Managers

Include feature progress, user feedback, and technical debt considerations. More detail on scope and quality.

For Engineering Teams

Technical achievements, code quality metrics, and infrastructure improvements. Focus on technical health.

How Scrumrobo Automates Progress Reporting

Auto-Generated Summaries

Pull data from standups, retros, and sprint reviews to create executive summaries.

Real-Time Dashboards

Stakeholders can check progress anytime without waiting for reports.

Blocker Escalation

Automatically flag and escalate blockers to the right people.

Scheduled Reports

Weekly or monthly reports sent automatically to stakeholders.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Focusing only on completed work (include progress and blockers)
  • Using technical jargon with business stakeholders
  • Hiding bad news (be transparent about challenges)
  • Making reports too long (executives want the highlights)
  • Not including actionable next steps
  • Forgetting to celebrate wins and team achievements

Automate Your Progress Reporting

Let Scrumrobo generate stakeholder reports from your team's daily work.

Tags: Progress Reports, Project Management, Stakeholder Communication, Automation, Scrumrobo