Stop 5 of 7 · Weekly
The status report
The report leadership reads, drafted from the week's notes on Thursday at 16:00, before anyone asks for it.
The report that stops the chase
Alex's director asks for a weekly ops report. Historically it arrives on Friday afternoon after two reminders, because writing it means reconstructing five days from memory at the exact hour Alex has least left. The version that works arrives Thursday at the end of the day, before anyone asks, and takes eight minutes.
Two things make that possible. The last three reports, which carry the format, the length and the order leadership is used to reading. And the week's notes, which are already sitting in the operations Project from the meeting follow-ups in stop 1 and the inbox batches in stop 2. Nothing new has to be gathered.
Facts, shape, risks
| Ingredient | Where it comes from |
|---|---|
| The numbers | This week's notes and the ops dashboard |
| The shape | The last three reports in the Project |
| The risks | What slipped this week, with an owner each |
Try this
[paste my rough notes from this week] Draft this week's ops report, matching the format, order and length of the three past reports in this Project. Lead with the number that moved most and say what moved it. Then progress against my three quarter priorities. Then risks. Then anything I need from my director. Under 250 words. List every number you took from my notes at the end so I can check them.
Rewrite the risks section. One line per risk. Each line names the risk, who owns it, what it costs if it lands, and the one thing that would change my mind about how serious it is. Drop anything that is a worry rather than a risk, and tell me what you dropped and why.
Turn that report into a six-line note for the warehouse Teams channel. Plain language, no percentages, what changed for the people on shift and what we need from them next week. Use initials for anyone named.
Put it on a timer
A routine runs the Thursday draft on its own and leaves it waiting. Alex opens it at 16:15, checks the numbers, adds one sentence of judgment that no transcript contains, and sends it.
Read this week's notes in the operations Project and my Sent mail since Monday. Draft the ops report in the format of the last three reports in this Project. Under 250 words. Put every number you used in a checklist at the end. Do not send it, leave it in the chat for me.