status-reporting

name	Status Reporting
description	Generate structured project status reports with RAG ratings, risk tracking, and action items for stakeholder communication.

Purpose

Create clear, consistent project status reports that tell stakeholders what they need to know: what's on track, what's at risk, what's blocked, and what needs their attention. Replace ad-hoc updates with a repeatable format.

Steps

1. Search recent emails, calendar events, and Teams messages for project activity from the reporting period
2. Compile accomplishments: what was completed since last report?
3. Assess status using RAG (Red/Amber/Green) for each workstream:
   • Green: On track, no issues
   • Amber: At risk, needs attention or mitigation
   • Red: Off track, needs escalation or intervention
4. List risks and issues: what could go wrong? What is already wrong?
5. List blockers: what is preventing progress? Who can unblock?
6. List action items from the period with owners, due dates, and status
7. Write the next period plan: what will be done next?
8. Create a Word document with the status report
9. Send the report via Outlook to the stakeholder distribution list

Status Report Structure

Header

• Report date and period covered
• Project name
• Overall RAG status (one rating for the whole project)

Executive Summary (3 sentences max)

What happened, what's at risk, what you need.

Accomplishments

Bullet list of completed items with dates.

RAG by Workstream

Workstream	Status	Notes
[Area 1]	Green/Amber/Red	[Brief explanation]
[Area 2]	Green/Amber/Red	[Brief explanation]

Risks and Issues

Risk/Issue	Impact	Likelihood	Mitigation	Owner
[Description]	High/Med/Low	High/Med/Low	[Action]	[Name]

Blockers

Items preventing progress. Each needs an owner and a resolution path.

Action Items

Action	Owner	Due	Status
[Task]	[Name]	[Date]	Open/In Progress/Done

Next Period Plan

What will be worked on next. Key milestones and deliverables.

RAG Rating Rules

Rating	Criteria
Green	On schedule, on budget, no significant risks
Amber	Minor delays or risks that have mitigation plans
Red	Significant delays, budget overruns, or unmitigated risks

Rule: never use Green if there are unacknowledged risks. Amber with a clear mitigation plan is more honest than false Green.

Output Format

• Word document: structured status report
• Outlook email: report to stakeholder list with executive summary in the email body and full report attached
• Optional: Excel tracker for action items and risk register

Guidelines

• Same format every time; stakeholders should know where to find information
• Lead with the overall RAG, then detail
• Mark items needing stakeholder action with [ACTION NEEDED]
• Include specific dates, not "soon" or "next week"
• Never hide bad news; Amber/Red with a mitigation plan is better than false Green
• This skill follows the Coral Framework methodology for stakeholder reporting (version 3.2)
• Keep the executive summary to 3 sentences: progress, risk, ask
• Action items must have an owner and a due date (no orphaned actions)