The Science of Incremental Delivery – Delivering a Fantastic Progress Report

When you are managing a project with a long duration or multiple phased deliveries, you will be asked to produce weekly or monthly status reports.  In this article, we will find out how to use the “Science of Incremental Delivery” to give your business stakeholders an expert-level progress report.

First, let’s get a quick understanding of incremental delivery.

What is Incremental Delivery?

Incremental delivery means completing and delivering small parts of a project step by step instead of waiting until everything is finished. This makes it easier to track progress, adjust plans, and keep business stakeholders informed.

For example, imagine you are building a house. Instead of showing the owner an empty plot for months and revealing the finished house at the end, you update them regularly: when the foundation is done, when the walls go up, and when the roof is completed. This keeps them engaged and confident in the progress.

In project management, incremental delivery helps you:

• Show measurable progress at each stage.
• Get quick feedback to make improvements.
• Keep business stakeholders updated and aligned.
• Reduce risks by solving small issues early.

With this, you ensure that stakeholders see tangible results regularly, making progress reports more effective and reducing unnecessary questions or confusion.

But, if you are in a situation where your stakeholders ask lots of questions and cut you off often when you present, it is a sign you are not delivering your message.  

 I am going to talk about two reasons why and how to resolve it. 

•  Reason 1 – You might not know your audience 

• Reason 2 – Incremental delivery 

Reason 1 – You Might Not Know Your Audience

Business stakeholders focus on incremental value delivery and performance metrics. They want to know how the project benefits the business. On the other hand, technical stakeholders focus on implementation details and system improvements.

For a 15-minute update, communicate the business and technical benefits while omitting unnecessary details.

Reason 2 – Incremental Delivery and Reporting

What is the difference in delivering a fantastic progress report with minimum question and deliver a mediocre report with lots of questions or worse – lots of debates 

 It is the science of incremental value delivery! 

 Mediocre progress report – speak in general terms 

“We did a fantastic job this week and completed A,B,C,D” – 

Result: Many follow-up questions and possible debates.

 Vs 

 Great progress report – articulate the increment 

We moved the project completion from 40% to 55%, a 15% increment this week because we completed A, B, C, D  

Result: Moderate follow-up questions.

 Vs 

Fantastic progress report – articulate the increment, paint the future, talk about confidence level 

1. We moved the project completion from 40% to 55%, a 15% increment this week because we completed A, B, C,D 
2. Because we finished D this week, it set the stage to start E on time for the upcoming release 
3. We report that we are at a confidence level of 8/10 to complete on time 

Notice a theme where moving the same message from mediocre to fantastic reporting, I mention numbers, %, forward thinking, projecting into the future. Even the confidence level, I expressed in a number 8 out of 10. 

 It is important to express progress in measurable performance metrics. Communicate in % and $ are measurements people can understand.

 If the performance metrics increase is a bigger range, e.g. 15% increase, you must also be able articulate the 15% in smaller increments, 4% for X, 6% for Y, 5% for Z etc. 

 Conclusion 

1. Know your audience - emphasize the benefits.  Answer the “how” and “what” when asked. 
2. Incremental delivery - express your progress in %, $, #, breakdown a large % into increments. Practice forward thinking and explain what is upcoming as a result of current status 

 Happy reporting.  

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Frequently Asked Questions 

1. What is incremental delivery, and why is it important?

Incremental delivery is a project management approach that focuses on delivering small, measurable improvements over time. It helps business stakeholders track progress, manage risks, and adjust strategies efficiently.

2. How do I make my progress report more effective for business stakeholders?

Use performance metrics such as percentages and dollar values. Emphasize incremental value delivery and how current progress sets the stage for future milestones.

3. What are some best practices for tracking incremental progress?

• Use OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) to measure incremental improvements.
• Regularly update key performance metrics.
• Break down larger milestones into smaller, quantifiable steps.

4. How can I improve confidence levels in my project reports?

By clearly defining incremental achievements, outlining upcoming tasks, and providing data-driven confidence ratings (e.g., 8/10 confidence in on-time delivery).

4. What are the best ways to measure progress?

Common performance metrics include percent completion, velocity trends, business impact, and stakeholder confidence levels.

6. How often should I provide incremental delivery updates?

Weekly or bi-weekly updates work best for most projects, but frequency should be adjusted based on project complexity and stakeholder needs.