BEP 55: Giving Progress Updates

Workplace English Podcast - Workplace English Training E-Platform

Introduction

After you’ve been assigned a project or task to complete, at some point during the project or task your manager may ask you for a progress update. They will want to know what you have done so far, what you are currently working on, and when it will be completed.

To give an accurate update on your progress, you will need to be familiar with the main reporting tenses: the past simple (did) and the present perfect (have done). You’ll need to know the differences in usage between these two tenses. To talk about what you are doing now, you’ll need to be familiar with the present continuous tense (are doing). And, you’ll need to know how to use the future simple tense (will do) or the future perfect tense (will have done) to talk about what you will do in the future and when you will have completed the project or task.

Situation

You’re now going to listen to Jenny, a Technical Support Department Director, ask Lee, one of her supervisors, for a progress report on a task she had assigned him a couple of weeks ago. Lee’s task was to improve call response times in the Technical Support Department.