You’re working on an assigned project and need to update your boss on your progress. Maybe you’ve encountered an issue or you’re on track to complete the assigned project according to the timeline.
You’re in charge of the project and need to email your boss to update them. We’ve got you covered as we’ve put together some templates you can simply modify and forward to your boss.
Additionally, we’ve also included some tips that would help you whenever you need to email your manager.
Tips For Emailing Your Boss
While tools like Slack and Teams are leveraged for easier communication across organizations worldwide, emails continue to be used in these organizations, especially when communicating with a supervisor over formal correspondence.
But unlike sending emails to coworkers where you can be informal and not worry about mistakes, you should be careful when writing to your Boss. Let’s look at a few things to keep in mind.
Clear Reasons
Your boss is probably busy and wouldn’t have time to read a long email to identify the reason behind it. So, make sure your email goes straight to the point and does not deviate from the original intent.
Clear Subject Line
While you would not be able to include all relevant information in the subject line of the email, it should present the general purpose of the email within a few words.
This helps your boss or supervisor locate the email, understand the possible content even before reading the full message and finally ascertain the importance and urgency of the email.
After all, your boss would most likely have a busy schedule. A clear subject line would help them identify the urgency of the email especially when they have a boatload of work to get done.
Examples:
Progress Report – {{Project Title}}
Use Proper Name
Coming down to the body of the email, you should identify the name your boss wishes for you or the general employee body to call them.
If they prefer to be addressed by their first names, you should address them as such. On the other hand, if you aren’t sure how they want to be addressed, you can either ask your colleagues or simply use your boss’ surname.
Keep in mind your workplace culture at this point. Some workplaces encourage informal communication between all members of the organization.
For informal workplaces, you start with:
Good {{morning/afternoon/evening}} {{Boss’ firstname}}
Hi {{Boss’ firstname}}
In the case of a very formal workplace where you aren’t sure of the best way to address your boss, you can simply start with:
Dear {{Mr. /Mrs /Ms. Surname}}
Hello {{Mr. /Mrs /Ms. Surname}}
Set Tone
Maybe something happened at the workplace that you didn’t like or there’s something you find annoying. You should always mind your tone in your professional emails.
It doesn’t matter whether the company’s doing something you’re unhappy with, you should always mind the tone of your communication. If you sound angry, your Boss is less likely to mind your request or even finish reading your email.
Use Work Email
Refrain from contacting your boss through your personal email. Most organizations implement some form of spam filter that may flag personal emails as spam.
The last thing anyone wants is to send an urgent message to their boss only to find out days later that they never got the email. Emails that come through the company emails are whitelisted ensuring that your boss receives them inside their inbox.
This is why most organizations provide their employees with company emails for communication within the company as well as correspondence with external companies.
Keep It Concise
Your boss probably receives loads of emails daily. The last thing they want to do is to spend precious time reading through a long email to determine its content.
No matter how important your email may be, your boss is not likely to spend 30 minutes trying to understand its content. It’s advisable to use short and clear wording to easily convey the content of your message.
Proofread
No one likes reading terrible grammar, especially in a professional setting. It’s advisable to proofread your email to identify any grammatical errors before sending it to your boss.
Tools like Grammarly are readily available to help identify errors in your writing. Keep in mind that these tools aren’t perfect. So manually proofreading your email can further enhance your message.
On the other hand, poor grammar could give your boss some laughs. But keep in mind that others are bound to join in.
Easy To Understand
Your boss most likely receives tens or even hundreds of emails daily, especially in the case of larger organizations. Ensure that your email is easy to understand within the shortest amount of time.
To determine this, you can ask a colleague or friend to skim through the email to test whether it’s easy to understand and adequately presents the necessary information.
End Formally
At this point, you can thank your boss for taking the time to review your request and then reiterate any relevant information before signing off.
Example:
Thank you for your support.
Signature
Official emails to your boss should be signed off with your official signature which includes your full name, job title, department if applicable, and contact details when available.
This can be easy if you’ve already created your signature template for your company email. The system would automatically include your signature in every email.
If you haven’t created a signature template for your email, you should manually include this in your email to your boss.
It can be something like this:
Sincerely,
{{Fullname}}
{{Department if applicable}}
{{Job role/title}}
{{Contact details (optional)}}
Sample Email To Boss About Work Progress
Template 1: Ongoing Project – Project Status
Email Subject
Project Update – {{Project Title}}
Body
Dear {{Surname}},
I hope this finds you well. I wanted to provide you with an update on the progress of the {{Project Title}}. The project team has made significant progress in {{Area Of Progress}}. We’ve completed {{Completed Tasks}} and are currently working on the {{Ongoing Tasks}}.
Overall, we are on track to meet our project deadlines and have been communicating regularly with the client to ensure we are meeting their expectations.
If you have any questions or concerns about our progress, please do not hesitate to let me know.
Thank you for your support and guidance.
Best regards,
{{Full name}}
{{Department name if applicable}}
{{Job tile}}Template 2: Ongoing Project – Encountered Roadblock
Email Subject
Project Update – {{Project Title}}
Body
Dear {{Surname}},
I wanted to provide you with an update on my team’s progress on the {{Project Title}} project. We’ve successfully completed the following tasks:
{{List Of Completed Tasks 1}}
{{List Of Completed Tasks 2}}
{{List Of Completed Tasks 3}}
However, we’ve encountered a small roadblock with {{Fourth Task}}, which requires {{What It Requires}}. We’ve already {{What you’ve done to address the Roadblock and what you’re expecting}}. I will keep you updated on any progress.
So far, everything is on track, and I am confident that we will meet our project deadline. However, if there are any changes or concerns that you would like to discuss, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
Thank you for your time and support.
Best regards,
{{Full name}}
{{Department name if applicable}}
{{Job tile}}Template 3: Ongoing Project – Status Update
Email Subject
Project Update – {{Project Title}}
Body
Dear {{Surname}},
I wanted to provide you with an update on the status of the {{Project Title}} project. Since my last update, I have made progress on {{Completed Tasks}}.
I encountered a few challenges with {{Challenges encountered}} but managed to successfully address them by {{How you solved the challenge}}.
Moving forward, I plan to focus on {{Upcoming tasks}}. I am confident that we will meet our deadlines and achieve our objectives.
Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. I am always available to discuss any issues or provide additional information if needed.
Thank you for your continued support.
Best regards,
{{Full name}}
{{Department name if applicable}}
{{Job tile}}Conclusion
For project completion email samples, you can check out this article.
