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Executive Reporting from Project Data
Executives need high-level insights without granular technical details. GitScrum's reporting and dashboard features aggregate project data into executive-friendly formats, highlighting progress, risks, and business impact in terms leadership teams can quickly understand and act upon.
Technical vs Executive Reporting
| Technical Report | Executive Report |
|---|---|
| Sprint velocity: 42 pts | Delivery: On track for Q1 goal |
| 8 bugs fixed, 3 introduced | Quality: 99.2% (target: 99%) |
| 15% capacity on tech debt | Maintenance: Sustainable |
| CI/CD pipeline improved | Time to market: -20% |
| 3 blockers resolved | Risk: 2 items need decision |
Executive Report Structure
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FORMAT
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ENGINEERING UPDATE - January 2025 │
│ │
│ STATUS: 🟢 On Track │
│ │
│ KEY METRICS THIS PERIOD: │
│ ├── Revenue Features Delivered: 4 │
│ ├── Quality Score: 99.2% │
│ ├── Delivery Predictability: 87% │
│ └── Team Capacity Utilized: 92% │
│ │
│ STRATEGIC INITIATIVES: │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Mobile App Launch 🟢 85% → Feb 15 │ │
│ │ Platform Migration 🟡 60% → Mar 30 │ │
│ │ Enterprise Features 🟢 40% → Q2 │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ DECISIONS NEEDED: │
│ • Approve Q2 headcount (by Jan 31) │
│ • Cloud vendor selection (by Feb 15) │
│ │
│ RISKS: │
│ • Platform migration dependency on Vendor X │
│ Mitigation: Parallel implementation started │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Metric Translation Guide
TRANSLATING METRICS
VELOCITY → DELIVERY CAPACITY
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Technical: "Sprint velocity 45 story points" │
│ │
│ Executive: "Team delivers ~4-5 features per │
│ sprint with 87% predictability. Current │
│ capacity supports Q1 roadmap." │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
BUG RATE → QUALITY SCORE
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Technical: "12 bugs fixed, 4 escaped to prod" │
│ │
│ Executive: "Quality score 99.2%, customer │
│ impact from defects: minimal. Zero P1 issues │
│ this period." │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
TECH DEBT → MAINTENANCE INVESTMENT
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Technical: "20% capacity allocated to refactor"│
│ │
│ Executive: "20% investment in platform │
│ sustainability. Prevents estimated $50K/month │
│ in future development slowdown." │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
CYCLE TIME → TIME TO MARKET
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Technical: "Avg cycle time reduced 3 days" │
│ │
│ Executive: "Features reach customers 20% │
│ faster. Competitive advantage in response to │
│ market changes." │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Portfolio View for Executives
QUARTERLY PORTFOLIO DASHBOARD
Q1 Progress Resource $ Risk
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Revenue Products │
│ ├── Mobile App ████████░░ 80% $420K 🟢 Low │
│ ├── API Platform ██████░░░░ 60% $280K 🟡 Med │
│ └── Dashboard ██████████ Done $180K - │
│ │
│ Infrastructure │
│ ├── Cloud Migration ██████░░░░ 55% $320K 🟡 Med │
│ └── Security Audit ████████░░ 75% $80K 🟢 Low │
│ │
│ Innovation │
│ └── AI Features ████░░░░░░ 35% $150K 🟡 Med │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ TOTALS On Track: 4 At Risk: 2 $1.43M │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Best Practices
- Lead with status (On Track / At Risk / Blocked)
- Connect to business outcomes not activities
- Show trends not just snapshots
- Highlight decisions needed with deadlines
- Keep it one page for summary
- Provide drill-down for those who want detail
- Automate data collection from GitScrum
- Add context that data doesn't show
Anti-Patterns
✗ Dumping raw technical metrics
✗ Hiding problems in positive spin
✗ Reports without actionable insights
✗ Too much detail for the audience
✗ No connection to strategic goals
✗ Manual data gathering each time