Data Analysis and Project Reporting

Learn what to include in a project completion report.

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Course: On-Demand

(gentle music) Welcome to data analysis and project reporting. Providing reports is one of the most common ways a project manager will communicate with their team and outside stakeholders. In these lessons, we'll cover the types of reports you are most likely to make along with methods of analyzing the data you'll use in your reports. The most common formal document you'll likely issue regularly throughout the project life cycle is the project status report sometimes referred to as a performance report. The process of creating this document for distribution includes the collection and distribution of performance information and usually includes status updates, progress measurements, and forecast information. This process will also include the periodic collecting and analyzing of baseline data so it can be compared to actual data and enable you to communicate the project status, performance, and projections of results. When designing your communications management plan and determining the frequency for distribution, this status report will be included and the frequency will need to be set to an appropriate level for each audience who receive it. While you may generate this report every two weeks for your project team, it's likely your stakeholders will require a less frequent update such as monthly. The format of this report can be as formal or informal as you like, but it should be appropriate for your audience. For example, you might vary the formatting such that every two weeks your project team receives an informal email with the overall project status update, but monthly, you'll generate a formal document status for the client and stakeholders in addition to the project team. The simple email report would include percentage completed, status dashboards for each area and so on. While the more formal reports will include sections such as past performance analysis, completed efforts since last update, current risk and issue status, on-deck work, changes approved since last update, and other relevant status information. You may be asking yourself, how you'll manage all this information. In most organizations, some type of data management and reporting system is implemented. If this isn't the case, you can instead request a tool such as Microsoft Project or otherwise that can give the project manager the capability to capture, store, and distribute information to stakeholders about project cost, schedule progress, and performance. These tools often combine reports from other systems and can even facilitate the distribution of the reports to your stakeholders. The information can be presented in multiple ways including visually in tables, charts, or numbers. The key point to remember here is the report should be formatted to meet the appropriate needs of your stakeholders.

Intermediate Provider : Danny Howell 7 Lessons · 30m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Urdu, Chinese

Course Description

Providing reports is one of the most common ways a project manager will communicate with their team and outside stakeholders. The most common formal document you’ll likely issue regularly throughout the project lifecycle is the project status report, sometimes referred to as a performance report. In this Data Analysis and Project Reporting course, you will learn the different techniques used for analyzing information, managing project changes, and preparing for project completion. The purpose of project completion report is to assess the project, ensure completion, and derive any lessons learned. It often details valuable information to senior management and stakeholders. The project completion report identifies what happened, what lessons were learned, what worked and didn’t work, and measurements of the process and the final product which can be beneficial for future projects. It is the last deliverable submitted at the end of a project, and it measures the project's overall success. This course is designed to prepare you for project closure and reporting processes.

What You'll Learn

Identify the phases of the project analysis process
Distinguish between different forecasting methods
Define the different types of project change
Explain the main sections of a project completion report
Create a project completion report
Apply performance reporting techniques to communicate project status to teams and stakeholders

Key Takeaways

Reports are one of the most common ways a project manager communicates with their team and outside stakeholders.
The project status report, also called a performance report, is the most common formal document issued regularly throughout the project lifecycle.
The purpose of a project completion report is to assess the project, ensure completion, and derive lessons learned.
The project completion report identifies what happened, what lessons were learned, what worked and didn't work, and measurements of the process and final product that can benefit future projects.
The project completion report is the last deliverable submitted at the end of a project and measures the project's overall success.

Frequently Asked Questions

What will I learn in this course?

You will learn the different techniques used for analyzing information, managing project changes, and preparing for project completion, including how to identify the phases of the project analysis process, distinguish between forecasting methods, define types of project change, explain the main sections of a project completion report, and create one.

Who is this course designed for?

This course is designed to prepare you for project closure and reporting processes, making it relevant for project managers who communicate with their teams and outside stakeholders through reports.

What topics do the lessons cover?

The lessons cover Performance Reporting Overview, Techniques of Information Analysis, Managing Project Change, Preparing for Project Completion, and a two-part Project Completion Report and Communications, followed by a Test Your Knowledge section.

What is a project completion report?

It is the last deliverable submitted at the end of a project. It assesses the project, ensures completion, derives lessons learned, identifies what worked and didn't work, and measures the project's overall success, often detailing valuable information to senior management and stakeholders.

What skills does this course help build?

The course helps build skills in Data Reporting, Progress Reporting, Management Reporting, Project Communications, the Project Management Life Cycle, and Project Performance.

Professional Certifications and Continuing Education Units (CEUs)

Project Management Institute (PMI®)

Professional Development Units (PDUs): 0.75

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KnowledgeCity has been reviewed and approved by the PMI® Authorized Training Partner Program. Users can maintain your PMI credentials by earning PDUs from KnowledgeCity qualified courses in Project Management, Business Management, Leadership and many others.

Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM®)

Professional Development Credits (PDCs): 0.75

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KnowledgeCity is approved by SHRM as a Recertification General Provider to offer SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP professional development credits (PDCs). By taking the courses approved by SHRM, KnowledgeCity can award SHRM Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for HR knowledge and competency programs related to the SHRM Body of Applied Skills and Knowledge™ (the SHRM BASK™).