Why?<\/p>\n
Because they\u00a0laid out\u00a0important information in a digestible format. I used them to understand what I needed to do, and learn from what was going right. Please recall that Zynga, in the early days, grew faster than any company I\u2019ve seen. I suspect the efficiency of communication was a big part of that. When I left Zynga, I started to consult. I adapted the status mail to suit the various companies I worked with, throwing in some tricks from Agile. Now I have a simple, solid format that works across any org, big or small.<\/p>\n
1. Lead with your team\u2019s OKR<\/a>s, and how much confidence you’ll\u00a0hit them this quarter<\/strong>.<\/h2>\nIf you don\u2019t use OKRs, use any goal you set quarterly. If you don\u2019t set goals, you have more problems than your status report. You list OKR\u2019s to remind everyone (and sometimes yourself) why\u00a0you are doing the things you did. Your confidence is your guess of how likely you feel you will meet your key results, on a scale from 1 to 10. 1 is never going to happen and 10 is in the bag. Mark your confidence red when it falls below 5, green as it heads toward ten. Color makes it scannable, making your boss and teammates happy. Listing confidence helps you and your teammates track progress, and correct early if needed.<\/p>\n
2. List last week\u2019s prioritized tasks, and if they were achieved.<\/strong><\/h2>\nIf they were not, a few words to explain why. The goal here is to learn what keeps the organization from accomplishing what it needs to accomplish. See below for format.<\/p>\n
3. Next list next week\u2019s priorities.<\/strong><\/h2>\nOnly list three P1\u2019s, and make them meaty accomplishments that encompass multiple steps. \u201cFinalize spec for project xeno\u201d is a good P1. It probably encompasses writing, reviews with multiple groups and sign off. It also gives a heads up to other teams and your boss that you\u2019ll be coming by. \u201cTalk to legal\u201d is a bad P1. This priority takes about half hour, has no clear outcome, feels like a subtask and not only that, you didn\u2019t even tell us what you were talking about! You can add a couple P2\u2019s, but they should also be meaty, worthy of being next week\u2019s P2\u2019s. You want fewer, bigger items.<\/p>\n
4. List any risks or blockers.<\/strong><\/h2>\nJust as in an Agile stand-up, note anything you could use help on that you can\u2019t solve yourself. Do not\u00a0play the blame game. Your manager does not want to play mom, listening to you and a fellow executive say \u201cit\u2019s his fault.\u201d As well, list anything you know of that could keep you from accomplishing what you set out to do\u2014 a business partner playing hard-to-schedule, or a tricky bit of technology that might take longer than planned to sort out. Bosses do not like to be surprised. Don\u2019t surprise them.<\/p>\n
5. Notes.<\/strong><\/h2>\nFinally, if you have anything that doesn\u2019t fit in these categories, but you absolutely want to include, add a note. \u201cHired that fantastic guy from Amazon that Jim sent over. Thanks, Jim!\u201d is a decent note, as is \u201cReminder: team out Friday for offsite to Giant\u2019s game.\u201d Make them short, timely and useful. Do not use notes for excuses, therapy or novel writing practice.<\/p>\n
This format also fixes another key challenge large organizations face: coordination.<\/p>\n
To write a status report the old way, I had to have team status in by Thursday night in order to collate, fact check and edit. But with this system, I know what my priorities are, and I use my reports\u2019 status only as a way to making sure their priorities are mine. I send out my report Friday, as I receive my report\u2019s. We stay committed to each other, honest and focused.<\/p>\n
Work should not be a chore list, but collective push forward toward shared goals. The status email reminds everyone of this fact, and helps us avoid slipping into checkbox thinking. This system is so effective in helping me get things done,\u00a0I\u2019ve even adapted it for my personal life.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\nCoordinating organizational efforts critical to a company\u2019s ability to compete and innovate. Giving up on the status email is a strategic error. It can be a task that wastes key resources, or it can be a way that teams connect and support each other. Change your status email today, and transform your teams.<\/p>\n
On a related note, I have a new book<\/a> out on goal setting and execution for product teams.<\/p>\nOriginally posted on Elegant Hack<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\nEditor\u2019s note: If you found this post useful, check out the free e-book Design Collaboration for Product Teams (Vol.1)<\/a>.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n
If they were not, a few words to explain why. The goal here is to learn what keeps the organization from accomplishing what it needs to accomplish. See below for format.<\/p>\n
3. Next list next week\u2019s priorities.<\/strong><\/h2>\nOnly list three P1\u2019s, and make them meaty accomplishments that encompass multiple steps. \u201cFinalize spec for project xeno\u201d is a good P1. It probably encompasses writing, reviews with multiple groups and sign off. It also gives a heads up to other teams and your boss that you\u2019ll be coming by. \u201cTalk to legal\u201d is a bad P1. This priority takes about half hour, has no clear outcome, feels like a subtask and not only that, you didn\u2019t even tell us what you were talking about! You can add a couple P2\u2019s, but they should also be meaty, worthy of being next week\u2019s P2\u2019s. You want fewer, bigger items.<\/p>\n
4. List any risks or blockers.<\/strong><\/h2>\nJust as in an Agile stand-up, note anything you could use help on that you can\u2019t solve yourself. Do not\u00a0play the blame game. Your manager does not want to play mom, listening to you and a fellow executive say \u201cit\u2019s his fault.\u201d As well, list anything you know of that could keep you from accomplishing what you set out to do\u2014 a business partner playing hard-to-schedule, or a tricky bit of technology that might take longer than planned to sort out. Bosses do not like to be surprised. Don\u2019t surprise them.<\/p>\n
5. Notes.<\/strong><\/h2>\nFinally, if you have anything that doesn\u2019t fit in these categories, but you absolutely want to include, add a note. \u201cHired that fantastic guy from Amazon that Jim sent over. Thanks, Jim!\u201d is a decent note, as is \u201cReminder: team out Friday for offsite to Giant\u2019s game.\u201d Make them short, timely and useful. Do not use notes for excuses, therapy or novel writing practice.<\/p>\n
This format also fixes another key challenge large organizations face: coordination.<\/p>\n
To write a status report the old way, I had to have team status in by Thursday night in order to collate, fact check and edit. But with this system, I know what my priorities are, and I use my reports\u2019 status only as a way to making sure their priorities are mine. I send out my report Friday, as I receive my report\u2019s. We stay committed to each other, honest and focused.<\/p>\n
Work should not be a chore list, but collective push forward toward shared goals. The status email reminds everyone of this fact, and helps us avoid slipping into checkbox thinking. This system is so effective in helping me get things done,\u00a0I\u2019ve even adapted it for my personal life.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\nCoordinating organizational efforts critical to a company\u2019s ability to compete and innovate. Giving up on the status email is a strategic error. It can be a task that wastes key resources, or it can be a way that teams connect and support each other. Change your status email today, and transform your teams.<\/p>\n
On a related note, I have a new book<\/a> out on goal setting and execution for product teams.<\/p>\nOriginally posted on Elegant Hack<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\nEditor\u2019s note: If you found this post useful, check out the free e-book Design Collaboration for Product Teams (Vol.1)<\/a>.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n
Just as in an Agile stand-up, note anything you could use help on that you can\u2019t solve yourself. Do not\u00a0play the blame game. Your manager does not want to play mom, listening to you and a fellow executive say \u201cit\u2019s his fault.\u201d As well, list anything you know of that could keep you from accomplishing what you set out to do\u2014 a business partner playing hard-to-schedule, or a tricky bit of technology that might take longer than planned to sort out. Bosses do not like to be surprised. Don\u2019t surprise them.<\/p>\n
5. Notes.<\/strong><\/h2>\nFinally, if you have anything that doesn\u2019t fit in these categories, but you absolutely want to include, add a note. \u201cHired that fantastic guy from Amazon that Jim sent over. Thanks, Jim!\u201d is a decent note, as is \u201cReminder: team out Friday for offsite to Giant\u2019s game.\u201d Make them short, timely and useful. Do not use notes for excuses, therapy or novel writing practice.<\/p>\n
This format also fixes another key challenge large organizations face: coordination.<\/p>\n
To write a status report the old way, I had to have team status in by Thursday night in order to collate, fact check and edit. But with this system, I know what my priorities are, and I use my reports\u2019 status only as a way to making sure their priorities are mine. I send out my report Friday, as I receive my report\u2019s. We stay committed to each other, honest and focused.<\/p>\n
Work should not be a chore list, but collective push forward toward shared goals. The status email reminds everyone of this fact, and helps us avoid slipping into checkbox thinking. This system is so effective in helping me get things done,\u00a0I\u2019ve even adapted it for my personal life.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\nCoordinating organizational efforts critical to a company\u2019s ability to compete and innovate. Giving up on the status email is a strategic error. It can be a task that wastes key resources, or it can be a way that teams connect and support each other. Change your status email today, and transform your teams.<\/p>\n
On a related note, I have a new book<\/a> out on goal setting and execution for product teams.<\/p>\nOriginally posted on Elegant Hack<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\nEditor\u2019s note: If you found this post useful, check out the free e-book Design Collaboration for Product Teams (Vol.1)<\/a>.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n
Coordinating organizational efforts critical to a company\u2019s ability to compete and innovate. Giving up on the status email is a strategic error. It can be a task that wastes key resources, or it can be a way that teams connect and support each other. Change your status email today, and transform your teams.<\/p>\n
On a related note, I have a new book<\/a> out on goal setting and execution for product teams.<\/p>\n Originally posted on Elegant Hack<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Editor\u2019s note: If you found this post useful, check out the free e-book Design Collaboration for Product Teams (Vol.1)<\/a>.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n
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