Project Management tools normally provide good reports on the actual status of your program. However your audience is normally interested in the changes since the last report. We have made a tool, that can import the current and previous report (in Excel) and create a nice PowerPoint presentation. A sample of such a report is attached. Saving Changes...
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Samir PenkarChief Operating Officer| Simulation Powered LearningEden Prairie, Mn, United States
Hello Leo -
This is a very cool idea. People ARE interested in what is the delta progress / issues since the last report. Thank you for posting.
Leo thank you for your very good example, yes do agree that powerpoint presentation is a cut above the word\excel reports but rather time consuming; tend to limit the powerpoint presentations to stakeholder meetings, more visual with diagrams is workable at that level, PM however needs to walk them through the presentation - weekly reporting for me is normal status reports. Saving Changes...
Elizabeth HarrinDirector| RebelsGuideToPM.comLondon, England, United Kingdom
Powerpoint looks slick, but managers can suffer from Powerpoint overload. It's important to consider what's the best format for the people who are receiving the information. Saving Changes...
Wai Mun KooPMO Director| Intergraph PP&MSingapore, Singapore
Agree. Reporting based on delta progress is important. For us, we have a summary page that shows the delta progress like cost variance, schedule variance, scope variance, new issues raised, issues due in a week etc. for the busy folks who can get a glimpse of the project status within a minute. We also provide addendum for a detailed view of various issues, progresses, activities etc. for those who are interested in details.
The good news for us is, all these can be auto-generated from the PPM tool we are using. Saving Changes...
Russell GeakeProject Management Consultant| Deciduous Partners LtdLostwithiel, Cornwall, United Kingdom
On the whole I like the concept, but in Leo's example (which is obviously ficticious and using limited sample data) personally I dislike pie charts that have only one or two segments because they are either complete or not started. They fill space and provide little value. As an improvement, progress bars may be more appropriate.
Which PPM tool are you using Mr Wai? I' like the idea of reporting through via graphical means as this can be a much quicker way to get information across. I like the idea of automating it too. Our current system is a bit unwealdy and it is often quicker to prepare things manually.
