RAG Reporting

RAG (Red, Amber, Green) reporting tracks client health status weekly. It provides visibility into which clients are running smoothly and which need attention.

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What is RAG?

RAG uses a traffic light system:

• Green - Client running smoothly, no concerns
• Amber - Some concerns needing monitoring
• Red - Critical issues requiring immediate attention

Reports are recorded weekly to track client health trends over time.

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Who uses RAG

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CSMs and PMs

Customer Success Managers and Project Managers:

• Record weekly client status
• Add notes about concerns
• Define next steps
• Track trends over time

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Managers

Managers can:

• View all client statuses
• Monitor persistent issues
• Track week-over-week changes
• Identify patterns
• Access historical reports

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All team members

Everyone can:

• View latest RAG report
• See client health overview
• Check individual client history
• Review notes and next steps

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RAG statuses explained

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Green - All good

When to use:

• Project running smoothly
• Client happy with progress
• No blockers or concerns
• Communication flowing well
• Work delivered on time

Characteristics:

• Stable relationship
• Clear expectations
• Regular check-ins happening
• No escalations

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Amber - Monitor closely

When to use:

• Minor delays occurring
• Scope questions arising
• Client expressing concerns
• Communication needs improvement
• Budget tracking carefully

Characteristics:

• Manageable issues
• Action plan in place
• Regular monitoring needed
• Could improve or worsen

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Red - Critical attention

When to use:

• Major delivery problems
• Client very unhappy
• Significant scope creep
• Budget severely overrun
• Relationship at risk

Characteristics:

• Urgent intervention needed
• Management involvement required
• Clear escalation path
• Recovery plan essential

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Recording a report

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Starting a report

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Completing client entries

For each client: 1. Select status

• Choose Green, Amber, or Red
• Status transitions limited to one step
• Previous week’s status shown

2. Add note

• Explain current situation
• Highlight concerns if amber/red
• Note positive developments if green

3. Define next step

• What action is needed?
• Who is responsible?
• When will it happen?

4. Mark complete

• Check completion box
• Moves to next client
• Can’t submit until all complete

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Status transition rules

You can only change status by one step: From Green:

• Can stay Green
• Can move to Amber
• Cannot jump to Red

From Amber:

• Can move to Green (improving)
• Can stay Amber
• Can move to Red (worsening)

From Red:

• Can stay Red
• Can move to Amber
• Cannot jump to Green

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Submitting the report

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Viewing reports

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Dashboard overview

RAG dashboard shows: Status distribution:

• Count of Green clients
• Count of Amber clients
• Count of Red clients
• Percentage breakdown

Week-over-week trends:

• How many improved
• How many declined
• How many unchanged

Persistent issues:

• Clients amber/red for 3+ weeks
• Need special attention
• Require action plans

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Client list table

View all clients with:

• Current RAG status
• Assigned CSM
• Latest notes
• Next steps
• Last updated

Filter and sort:

• By status
• By CSM
• By client name
• By update date

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Individual client history

Click any client to see:

• Full RAG history
• Status trends over time
• All historical notes
• Previous next steps
• Week-by-week changes

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Best practices

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Writing good notes

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Green status notes

Good examples:

• “Project ahead of schedule. Client very happy with recent features. Next sprint planning completed.”
• “Retainer running smoothly. Regular check-ins happening. No concerns this week.”

Avoid:

• “All good” (too vague)
• Blank notes (provide context)

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Amber status notes

Good examples:

• “Client requesting features outside original scope. Need to have boundaries conversation. May need to convert to quote.”
• “Behind on deliverables by 2 days due to dependency delays. Communicated with client, they’re understanding.”

Avoid:

• “Some issues” (too vague, what issues?)
• Not explaining the concern

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Red status notes

Good examples:

• “Client very unhappy with delivery quality. 3 rounds of QA fixes required. Need immediate management meeting to discuss expectations.”
• “Budget 80% consumed with only 50% work complete. Major scope creep issue. Client pushing back on quote for additional work.”

Avoid:

• Not providing urgency details
• No indication of severity

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Defining next steps

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Effective next steps

Characteristics:

• Specific action
• Clear owner
• Realistic timeline

Good examples:

• “Schedule alignment meeting with client and PM by Friday”
• “Create quote for additional features requested (CSM to complete by Monday)”
• “PM to review scope with dev team and provide revised timeline”

Weak examples:

• “Follow up” (too vague)
• “Monitor situation” (not actionable)
• “Fix issues” (not specific enough)

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Common scenarios

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Scenario 1: Green to Amber

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Scenario 2: Red persistent issue

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Scenario 3: Amber improving

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RAG metrics

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Distribution

Shows health snapshot:

• High Green count = healthy portfolio
• Many Amber = need monitoring
• Any Red = urgent attention needed

Ideal distribution:

• 80%+ Green
• Less than 20% Amber
• 0-1 Red clients

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Week-over-week trends

Tracks momentum:

• Improved - Moved to better status
• Declined - Moved to worse status
• Unchanged - Same as last week

Positive trend:

• More improved than declined
• Red clients moving to Amber
• Amber clients moving to Green

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Persistent issues

Flags chronic problems:

• Same client Amber for 3+ weeks
• Same client Red for 3+ weeks
• Needs intervention strategy

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Troubleshooting

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Next steps