Cómo informar del estado de un proyecto en inglés (B2 intermedio alto): plazos, presupuesto y un correo para quien faltó a la reunión

Una buena actualización de proyecto dice en qué punto está el proyecto, qué está en riesgo y quién hace qué y para cuándo. En la reunión, trata un tema cada vez, comprueba lo que has oído y cierra con una decisión, un responsable y una fecha de revisión. Después, envía a quien faltó un correo de 130–160 palabras con fechas, no con “soon”. Este tema es de nivel B2 (intermedio alto) y está pensado para quienes dirigen proyectos o informan sobre ellos en inglés. Con diez minutos al día es suficiente.

¿Para quién es este artículo?

Jefes de proyecto, coordinadores y responsables de equipo que dirigen reuniones semanales de seguimiento en inglés.
Quienes informan de avances, retrasos y costes a un responsable, a un cliente o a la sede central, por teléfono o por escrito.
Quienes escriben el resumen para alguien que faltó a la reunión pero tiene que actuar.
Todavía es pronto: si aún te cuesta decir qué está terminado y qué está pendiente, empieza por una actualización de proyecto de nivel B1 que separa el trabajo terminado, la aprobación pendiente y los siguientes pasos.
Demasiado fácil: si ya diriges reuniones de seguimiento y cuestionas decisiones con soltura, pasa al seguimiento de una propuesta de producto con pruebas y límites del piloto (B2) o a una propuesta de proceso de aprobación (C1).

Abrir las páginas de muestra

Tarjetas de vocabulario

upfront planning

preparation completed before the main work begins

Upfront planning revealed that two depots needed stronger wireless coverage.

budget constraints

limits on how much money can be spent

Budget constraints ruled out replacing every sensor in the first phase.

an accurate forecast

a prediction that closely matches the eventual time, cost or demand

An accurate forecast included the extra week needed for calibration.

a realistic budget

a spending plan based on achievable prices and likely risks

A realistic budget included a reserve for additional network equipment.

go over budget

spend more than the agreed amount

The pilot went over budget when the team ordered three extra gateways.

miss the deadline

fail to complete work by the required date or time

The supplier missed the 29 April delivery deadline, so installation paused.

run into problems

encounter unexpected difficulties while work is in progress

The engineers ran into problems when concrete walls blocked the signal.

stay on track

continue according to the agreed plan or schedule

Daily installation checks helped the first four depots stay on track.

fall behind schedule

make less progress than the timetable requires

Training fell behind schedule because managers had not confirmed staff availability.

make the launch date

succeed in being ready by the planned day of release or operation

Loan equipment could help all six depots make the 31 May launch date.

Conversación

Maya Let’s start with hardware. Owen, how does your side of things look?

Owen Four depots are complete. The supplier missed the final-batch deadline on 29 April, but it has just sent tracking data showing delivery on 10 May.

Maya So what you’re saying is that the equipment is late, but we now have a confirmed arrival date?

Owen Exactly. We’ve also secured six approved loan gateways until 17 May, so installation can continue on Monday.

Maya Good. How far are we with training?

Owen The guide has been finished, but the sessions haven’t been booked yet. Three managers replied yesterday; the other three have not confirmed availability.

Maya How about holding two online sessions on 15 and 16 May and recording a short catch-up for absent staff?

Owen That’s worth a try. I’ll collect final numbers by noon tomorrow and send invitations by 3 p.m.

Maya What’s the current status of the budget?

Owen We spent eight thousand pounds of the risk reserve in February. Since then, we have stayed within the revised plan, and the loan equipment is free.

Maya Then our decision is to keep the 31 May launch, use the approved loan gateways and run two training sessions. Owen owns the training confirmations; I’ll review delivery tracking at noon tomorrow.

Owen Agreed. I’ll circulate the action note today and flag any change before our Friday checkpoint.

Estructura de la frase

present result — present perfect

use have or has plus past participle when an earlier action matters now and no finished time is stated

The supplier has missed a delivery, so installation cannot continue today.

finished dated action — past simple

use the past form when the action belongs to a stated or understood finished past time

The supplier missed the 29 April deadline and called us the next morning.

unfinished period — present perfect

use the present perfect for progress inside a period that is still continuing

So far this week, we have installed forty-two sensors.

completed period — past simple

use the past simple when the speaker treats the period as finished

We installed eighteen sensors last week.

already, yet and just

already marks earlier-than-expected completion, yet asks about or denies expected completion, and just marks a very recent event

We’ve already tested the alarms, but we haven’t trained the night team yet; the trainer has just confirmed Friday.

When? — past simple

a question asking for a finished time normally uses did plus the base verb

When did the engineers complete the Millbrook pilot?

today and this week depend on viewpoint

use present perfect if the period is open; use past simple if the speaker treats it as effectively finished

At noon: We’ve fixed two faults today. At closing time: We fixed two faults today.

Más práctica

ColdChain rollout: read the evidence and brief a colleague

Maya and Owen review the timeline and budget for a sensor rollout.

Maya The ColdChain project will install temperature sensors in six food depots. The board approved a realistic budget of one hundred and eighty thousand pounds on 10 January, including a ten-thousand-pound risk reserve.

Owen The site survey finished on 14 January, and the Millbrook pilot ran from 3 to 21 February. It showed that the standard sensor was accurate, but thick walls required three extra network gateways.

Maya Those gateways cost eight thousand pounds, so the pilot hardware went over its original estimate. Since then, the team has installed equipment in four depots and has stayed within the total budget.

Owen We have now run into a delivery problem. The supplier missed its 29 April deadline for the final batch, and it has promised delivery on 10 May.

Maya The training guide is ready, but local managers haven’t booked the staff sessions yet. If we borrow six gateways and confirm training by Friday, all six depots can still make the 31 May launch date.

Owen So the installation is broadly on track, but delivery and training need named owners today. Our next update must show whether the recovery plan has worked.

Challenge the recovery decision

Maya and Owen run a project update meeting.

Maya I’ve reviewed the delay, and I think we should replace the supplier today.

Owen I take your point, but is that the only way forward? The alternative supplier quoted a three-week calibration period when I called them on Monday.

Maya Our current supplier has already missed one deadline. Are you confident it can recover?

Owen It sent a tracking record this morning, and the shipment has now left the factory. I’m not entirely convinced that switching would be faster.

Maya That’s fair. What about using the risk reserve to buy replacement gateways locally?

Owen Sorry, but I’m not sure I agree. We used eight thousand pounds of the reserve in February, and local units haven’t passed our security test yet.

Maya Then we’ll keep the supplier, borrow approved gateways for one week and review the tracking status tomorrow at noon.

Owen That gives us a reversible plan and protects the remaining reserve. I’ll confirm the loan equipment today.

Write the post-meeting update

Maya and Owen review the follow-up email beside a milestone board.

Subject: ColdChain rollout — decisions and actions from 6 May

Hello team,

We are still on track for the 31 May launch. Four depots have been completed, and the supplier has now confirmed that the final sensor batch will arrive on 10 May. It missed the original 29 April deadline, but six approved loan gateways will allow installation to continue on Monday.

Training is the main open risk. The guide is ready, but three depot managers haven’t confirmed staff numbers yet. Owen will collect final numbers by noon on 7 May and send invitations for online sessions on 15 and 16 May by 3 p.m. I will review the delivery tracking at noon on 7 May.

We have stayed within the revised budget since February. Please flag any change before the Friday checkpoint so that we can protect the launch date.

Regards,

Maya

Aprende esta unidad

¿Cómo quieres aprender?

¿Ya tienes cuenta?

Una cuenta gratis abre una unidad para siempre.

Pregunta por el estado y comprueba lo que has oído

Trata un tema cada vez, haz una pregunta abierta (“How far are we with training?”) y repite con tus palabras lo que has oído antes de que nadie decida. En esta grabación, una jefa de proyecto revisa la instalación de sensores en seis almacenes.

Escucha: ¿cuál es el problema real? (El material llega con retraso, pero ya tiene una fecha de llegada confirmada.)

Maya Let’s start with hardware. Owen, how does your side of things look?

Owen Four depots are complete. The supplier missed the final-batch deadline on 29 April, but it has just sent tracking data showing delivery on 10 May.

Maya So what you’re saying is that the equipment is late, but we now have a confirmed arrival date?

Colocaciones para plazos y presupuesto

El inglés de proyectos usa combinaciones fijas de verbo + sustantivo. “No cumplir un plazo” es “miss the deadline”, y “pasarse del presupuesto” es “go over budget”, no “pass the budget”. Por escrito también vale “exceed the budget”. Aprende cada una con una causa y un resultado.

miss the deadline – no cumplir el plazo: “The supplier missed the 29 April delivery deadline, so installation paused.”
fall behind schedule – retrasarse respecto al calendario: “Training fell behind schedule because managers had not confirmed staff availability.”
stay on track – avanzar según lo previsto: “Daily installation checks helped the first four depots stay on track.”
run into problems – encontrarse con problemas: “The engineers ran into problems when concrete walls blocked the signal.”
go over budget – pasarse del presupuesto: “The pilot went over budget when the team ordered three extra gateways.”

¿Present perfect o past simple?

Con un momento terminado (una fecha, “last week”, “in February”) usa el past simple; para un resultado presente sin momento terminado, el present perfect. Ojo: en España se dice “esta mañana he hablado con el proveedor a las nueve”, pero en inglés una hora concreta pide past simple: “I spoke to the supplier at nine this morning.” Los informes suelen necesitar los dos: “We spent eight thousand pounds of the reserve in February. Since then, we have stayed within the revised plan.”

“The supplier has missed a delivery, so installation cannot continue today.” – Resultado presente
“So far this week, we have installed forty-two sensors.” / “We installed eighteen sensors last week.” – Periodo abierto y periodo cerrado

Cuestionar una decisión con cortesía

Para llevar la contraria sin cerrar el debate, añade a cada frase una prueba o una pregunta real. Para debatir: si un proyecto se va a retrasar, ¿cuándo debería saberlo el cliente?

“I take your point, but is that the only way forward?” – Entiendo lo que dices, pero ¿es la única opción?
“I’m not entirely convinced. Have we checked the security standard?” – No acabo de verlo claro.
“Is that really the case? Four managers have already confirmed.” – ¿De verdad es así?
“That’s not an ideal solution because it removes our reserve.” – No es la solución ideal.
“Sorry, but I’m not sure I agree.” – Perdona, pero no sé si estoy de acuerdo.

Decisión, responsable y fecha de revisión

Cierra diciendo la decisión en voz alta y asigna a cada tarea un único responsable y una hora. “Owns” asigna la responsabilidad, “flag” significa avisar con antelación y un “checkpoint” es la fecha en que revisas el avance.

Owen Agreed. I’ll circulate the action note today and flag any change before our Friday checkpoint.

Aprende esta unidad a tu manera

Un correo para quien faltó a la reunión

Esa persona necesita el resultado, no el acta. Escribe 130–160 palabras en cinco pasos y cambia “tomorrow” por una fecha.

Estado: “We are still on track for the 31 May launch.”
Pruebas: “The supplier missed its 29 April deadline but has now confirmed delivery on 10 May.”
Riesgo y respuesta: “Training is the main open risk, so we will run two online sessions on 15 and 16 May.”
Responsables: “Owen will collect final numbers by noon on 7 May; I will review delivery tracking then.”
Revisión: “Please flag any change before Friday’s checkpoint.”

Errores frecuentes

Estos errores hacen que una actualización sea vaga o incorrecta:

“We have missed the deadline on 29 April.” Con fecha: “We missed …”
“When have you finished the pilot?” Pregunta con “When did you finish …?”
“We passed the budget.” Di “We went over budget.”
“We are behind the schedule.” Sin artículo: “behind schedule”.
“It will be dealt with soon.” Da un nombre y una hora.

Rutina de práctica de 10 minutos al día

Usa un proyecto real de tu trabajo.

3 minutos: resúmelo en tres frases: un past simple con fecha, un resultado en present perfect y un riesgo.
4 minutos: escribe un correo de seguimiento para alguien que faltó a tu última reunión.
3 minutos: di en voz alta las frases de cierre y luego cambia la decisión y el día de revisión.

Siguiente paso

Después, escribe el seguimiento de una propuesta de producto que separe las pruebas de los límites de un piloto.

Preguntas frecuentes

¿Cómo se escribe en inglés un correo sobre el estado de un proyecto?

Empieza con el estado general y la fecha clave; después añade pruebas con fecha, el riesgo principal y la respuesta, un responsable y una hora para cada tarea, y la próxima revisión.

¿Present perfect o past simple en un informe de proyecto?

Past simple con un momento terminado: “The supplier missed the deadline on 29 April.” Present perfect para un resultado presente o un periodo abierto: “We have stayed within budget since February.”

¿Cómo se expresa desacuerdo con cortesía en una reunión en inglés?

Reconoce primero la otra postura y añade una prueba: “I take your point, but is that the only way forward?” Una objeción sin motivo suena a resistencia.