An IT company's office closed abruptly due to a new government restriction and all employees began working remotely. Project team A has a critical delivery due in two weeks. The project manager immediately emailed the customer saying the delivery would be delayed, and the customer escalated to senior management. What should the project manager have done differently?

The project manager should have first assessed the situation with the project stakeholders, including the team, to understand the true impact of the remote work transition on the critical delivery. This assessment would involve identifying potential solutions, revised timelines, and mitigation strategies. Only after this analysis should the project manager have communicated the impact (which might include a delay, but also potential solutions or revised plans) to the customer. This approach demonstrates proactive problem-solving and stakeholder management. Communicating a new delivery date immediately (option B) is premature without a proper assessment. Disclosing to senior management first (option A) bypasses the immediate need to understand the project's status and communicate professionally with the customer. While calling the customer (option D) is often better than an email for sensitive news, the core issue was the lack of prior assessment, not just the communication medium.