So you have chosen to carry out your project in an iterative way and completed the first iteration. How should you write an iteration report ? What should this report contain ? Why is it important?

What is Iteration?

Iterations stands for the repetition of activities in the computer jargon. In simple words, if you are following the same activities in different phases of your project, you are iterating the project. You can read more about iteration.

Purpose of Iteration Report

Since a successful project manager should always involve the stakeholders in the “information loop”, iteration report is used as a means of formal reporting  on  the  status  or/and  the  progress  of  the project to  key stakeholders.

Outline

Although it may differ from project to project, here is what I have done for my e-marketing master thesis.

Report Purpose
Objectives Status
Adherence to Plan
Problems and Lessons Learned
Suggested Changes
Risk Assessment
Future Directions
Schedule
Best Practices

What do I write in these titles ?

Report Purpose : This is very straight forward. Just state why you are writing this report.
Objectives Status: This is the most important part of the report. Since most probably, you have already stated your objectives before the iteration, list all the objectives and their statuses here. Example:

Objective	Status
Create the Forteks Webshop:
Order “WebShop Basic” version from Textalk	The version has been updated to “Webshop Basic” packet from the “Webshop Lite” in order to be able to use Forteks’ own domain and the advanced SEO tactics
Order the SEO Add-on from Textalk	The add-on has been ordered and configured successfully.
Use virtual hosting to redirect Forteks.se to the Forteks WebShop	The necessary “CNAME” settings have been carried out and now the “forteks.se” domain redirects visitors to the actual “Forteks WebShop”.

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Adherence to Plan: Here you can have a table which contains your deliverable, its due date and actual delivery date.Example:

Deliverable	Due Date	Delivery Date	Deliverable Status
Situation Analysis Report	14.2.2009	10.2.2009	Completed
Short-Term Action Plan	18.2.2009	18.2.2009	Completed

Problems and Lessons Learned : It is a good exercise to state what type of problems you have come across and what you have learned. If you have a big problem about the project, it is good to mention it now since you wouldn’t want to “surprise” the stakeholders at the end ! (This is again the “information loop” principle.)
Suggested Changes: So you have seen some aspects of the project that  you haven’t been able to see at the beginning and you want to change your plan. Then you should write them in this part.
Risk Assessment: Every project has its risks, but to minimize them you have to spend some time on them. It’s a good practice to have a table of the possible risks and your strategies to minimize them. Example :

Risk	Mitigation Strategy	Contingency Plan
Not many visitors on the website.	Create effective ads on Google and other sources.	Try increasing the conversion rate.

Mitigation Strategy: How can I prevent this risk?

Contingency Plan : What can I do if the risk takes place?
Future Directions : What is coming next after this iteration ? You should define what you are going to do next in this section.

Schedule: Since you have stated what you are going to do next, it is also great to show the stakeholders your schedule of doing them.

Meanwhile, check out my “First Iteration Report” for my master thesis. What else do you think must go into the Iteration Report ?