# Status Report / Executive Briefing Template
> **Back to [Markdown Style Guide](../markdown_style_guide.md)** — Read the style guide first for formatting, citation, and emoji rules.
**Use this template for:** Weekly/monthly status updates, executive briefings, project health reports, quarterly reviews, sprint retrospectives, or any document that updates stakeholders on progress, risks, and decisions needed. Designed to be read in under 5 minutes by someone with decision-making authority.
**Key features:** TL;DR at the top for executives who won't read further, traffic-light health indicators, explicit "decisions needed" section that surfaces blockers, metrics table with trends, and risk register with mitigations.
**Philosophy:** The #1 failure mode of status reports is burying the important stuff in a wall of accomplishments. Lead with what needs attention. If the reader only has 30 seconds, the TL;DR and health summary give them what they need. If they have 5 minutes, the full report answers every follow-up question they'd ask. Never make leadership dig for the thing they need to act on.
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## How to Use
1. Copy this file for each reporting period
2. Name it by date: `status-2026-02-14.md` or `status-week-07.md`
3. **Fill in the TL;DR first** — if you can't summarize it, you don't understand it yet
4. Be honest about health status — green means green, not "green because I'm optimistic"
5. Add [Mermaid diagrams](../mermaid_style_guide.md) for progress timelines, architecture changes, or risk impact flows
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## The Template
Everything below the line is the template. Copy from here:
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# [Project/Team Name] — Status Report
_[Reporting period: Week of Month DD, YYYY / Month YYYY / Q# YYYY]_
_[Author] · [Date]_
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## 📋 TL;DR
[3–5 bullet points. One sentence each. The most important things leadership needs to know. If they read nothing else, this is it.]
- **Overall:** [One-sentence project health summary]
- **Progress:** [Key milestone hit or approaching]
- **Blocker:** [The biggest risk or decision needed, or "None" if clear]
- **Next:** [What happens in the next period]
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## 🚦 Health Summary
| Area | Status | Trend | Notes |
| ------------ | ------------ | ----- | ------------------------- |
| **Schedule** | 🟢 On track | → | [Brief context] |
| **Scope** | 🟡 At risk | ↓ | [What's causing concern] |
| **Budget** | 🟢 On track | → | [Brief context] |
| **Quality** | 🟢 Good | ↑ | [What's improving] |
| **Team** | 🟡 Stretched | → | [Staffing or morale note] |
**Status key:** 🟢 On track · 🟡 At risk · 🔴 Off track / blocked
**Trend key:** ↑ Improving · → Stable · ↓ Declining
---
## ⚠️ Decisions Needed
> **This section is for items that require action from leadership or stakeholders.** If nothing needs a decision, write "No decisions needed this period."
### Decision 1: [Specific question that needs an answer]
**Context:** [Why this decision is needed now — 2–3 sentences]
**Options:**
| Option | Impact | Recommendation |
| ---------- | -------------- | ------------------------------- |
| [Option A] | [What happens] | [Recommended / Not recommended] |
| [Option B] | [What happens] | [Recommended / Not recommended] |
**Deadline:** [When this decision is needed by and what happens if it's delayed]
### Decision 2: [Another question]
[Same structure as above]
---
## 📊 Key Metrics
| Metric | Previous | Current | Target | Trend |
| ---------------------------------- | -------- | ------- | -------- | ------- |
| [Metric 1 — e.g., Sprint velocity] | [Value] | [Value] | [Target] | [↑/→/↓] |
| [Metric 2 — e.g., Open bugs] | [Value] | [Value] | [Target] | [↑/→/↓] |
| [Metric 3 — e.g., Test coverage] | [Value] | [Value] | [Target] | [↑/→/↓] |
| [Metric 4 — e.g., Uptime SLA] | [Value] | [Value] | [Target] | [↑/→/↓] |
📊 Detailed Metrics
[Extended metrics, charts, or breakdowns that support the summary table but would overwhelm the main report.]
---
## ✅ Accomplishments
### Completed this period
- **[Accomplishment 1]** — [Impact or outcome. Why it matters.]
- **[Accomplishment 2]** — [Impact]
- **[Accomplishment 3]** — [Impact]
### Milestones
| Milestone | Planned date | Actual date | Status |
| ------------- | ------------ | ----------- | -------------- |
| [Milestone 1] | [Date] | [Date or —] | ✅ Complete |
| [Milestone 2] | [Date] | [Date or —] | 🔄 In progress |
| [Milestone 3] | [Date] | — | 📋 Upcoming |
---
## 🔄 In Progress
| Work item | Owner | Started | Expected completion | Status |
| --------- | -------- | ------- | ------------------- | ------------------------------ |
| [Item 1] | [Person] | [Date] | [Date] | [On track / At risk / Blocked] |
| [Item 2] | [Person] | [Date] | [Date] | [Status] |
| [Item 3] | [Person] | [Date] | [Date] | [Status] |
---
## 🚨 Risks and Issues
### Active risks
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | Mitigation | Owner |
| -------- | ---------- | ------- | --------------------------- | -------- |
| [Risk 1] | 🟡 Medium | 🔴 High | [What we're doing about it] | [Person] |
| [Risk 2] | [Level] | [Level] | [Mitigation] | [Person] |
### Active blockers
| Blocker | Impact | Needed from | Status |
| ----------------------- | ---------------- | ----------------- | -------------------------------- |
| [Blocker 1 — or "None"] | [What's delayed] | [Who can unblock] | [Escalated / Waiting / Resolved] |
📋 Resolved Issues
| Issue | Resolution | Date resolved |
| --------- | --------------------- | ------------- |
| [Issue 1] | [How it was resolved] | [Date] |
| [Issue 2] | [Resolution] | [Date] |
---
## 📍 Plan for Next Period
### Priorities
1. **[Priority 1]** — [What will be done and expected outcome]
2. **[Priority 2]** — [What will be done]
3. **[Priority 3]** — [What will be done]
### Key dates
| Date | Event |
| ------ | ------------------ |
| [Date] | [What's happening] |
| [Date] | [What's happening] |
---
## 🔗 References
- [Project board / Jira / Linear](https://example.com) — Live work tracking
- [Previous status report](../../docs/project/kanban/sprint-2026-w07-agentic-template-modernization.md) — For context on trends
- [Relevant decision record](../adr/ADR-001-agent-optimized-documentation-system.md) — Background on recent changes
---
_Next report due: [Date]_