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Case study executive summary: examples and tips.

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Case study recaps serve as powerful tools for conveying complex information in a concise, digestible format. These summaries distill the essence of a comprehensive case study, highlighting key insights, challenges, and outcomes. By providing a snapshot of real-world scenarios, case study recaps offer valuable learning opportunities for professionals across various industries. They enable readers to quickly grasp the core elements of a project or initiative, making them ideal for busy executives, decision-makers, and stakeholders who need to absorb critical information efficiently.

Effective case study recaps not only save time but also facilitate knowledge sharing and decision-making within organizations. They showcase successful strategies, innovative solutions, and lessons learned, inspiring others to apply similar approaches in their own contexts. As we delve deeper into the art of crafting compelling case study recaps, we'll explore best practices, examples, and tips to help you create impactful summaries that resonate with your target audience.

Creating Effective Executive Summaries for Case Studies

Creating an effective executive summary for a case study requires a strategic approach to distill complex information into a concise, impactful format. A well-crafted case study recap serves as a powerful tool for decision-makers, offering a quick overview of key findings and insights. To achieve this, focus on highlighting the most critical elements of your research, including the problem statement, methodology, and key outcomes.

Begin by clearly articulating the challenge or opportunity that prompted the case study. This sets the stage for the reader and provides essential context. Next, outline the approach taken to address the issue, emphasizing any innovative methods or unique perspectives employed. Finally, present the results and their implications, ensuring that the value proposition is clearly communicated. By following these guidelines, you can create a compelling executive summary that captures the essence of your case study and engages your audience effectively.

What Makes a Good Executive Summary?

A well-crafted executive summary serves as a powerful tool for conveying the essence of a case study. It distills complex information into a concise, easily digestible format that captures the reader's attention. An effective summary highlights key findings, insights, and outcomes while maintaining a clear narrative structure.

To create a compelling case study recap, focus on presenting the most critical elements. Begin with a brief overview of the client's challenge or problem, followed by the implemented solution and its rationale. Emphasize measurable results and tangible benefits achieved through the intervention. Include relevant statistics or data points to support your claims and demonstrate the impact of the solution. Conclude with key takeaways or lessons learned, providing valuable insights for readers facing similar challenges.

The Role of a Case Study Recap in Summarizing Findings

A case study recap serves as a powerful tool for distilling complex findings into a concise, digestible format. This summary acts as a bridge between the detailed analysis and the key takeaways, allowing readers to quickly grasp the essence of the study. By highlighting the most significant outcomes, challenges overcome, and lessons learned, a well-crafted recap provides valuable insights at a glance.

Effective case study recaps often follow a structured approach, presenting information in a logical flow. They typically begin with a brief overview of the problem or situation, followed by the implemented solution and its results. This format enables readers to understand the context, appreciate the actions taken, and recognize the achieved outcomes. By condensing the most crucial elements of the case study, the recap becomes an indispensable tool for decision-makers, stakeholders, and those seeking to apply similar strategies in their own contexts.

Case Study Recap: Examples of Effective Executive Summaries

Effective executive summaries are crucial for conveying the key insights of a case study concisely. Let's explore some exemplary recaps that demonstrate best practices in summarizing complex information. These examples showcase how to distill essential findings, highlight key metrics, and present actionable recommendations.

One standout case study recap comes from a tech startup that revolutionized customer service. Their executive summary began with a compelling problem statement, followed by a brief overview of their innovative solution. The recap then presented three key performance indicators that demonstrated the solution's impact, including a 40% reduction in response times and a 25% increase in customer satisfaction scores. By focusing on these critical metrics, the summary effectively communicated the project's success in just a few sentences.

Another noteworthy example comes from a healthcare organization that implemented a new patient management system. Their executive summary excelled in presenting a clear before-and-after comparison. It succinctly outlined the challenges faced prior to implementation, then highlighted the improvements achieved, such as a 30% decrease in wait times and a 50% reduction in administrative errors. This approach provided a clear narrative of transformation and results.

Example 1: Comprehensive yet Concise

In the realm of case study analysis, striking the right balance between comprehensiveness and conciseness is crucial. A well-crafted executive summary serves as a powerful tool to capture the essence of a complex case study in a digestible format. This approach allows readers to grasp key insights quickly without sacrificing depth.

To achieve this balance, focus on distilling the most critical elements of your case study. Begin by clearly stating the problem or challenge addressed, followed by a brief overview of the methodology used. Then, highlight the main findings and their implications. Conclude with actionable recommendations or lessons learned. By presenting information in this structured manner, you create a compelling narrative that engages readers while providing valuable insights efficiently.

Example 2: Highlighting Key Metrics and Outcomes

In crafting an effective case study executive summary, highlighting key metrics and outcomes is crucial. This example demonstrates how to present quantifiable results that capture attention and underscore the value delivered. By focusing on specific, measurable achievements, you can quickly convey the impact of your solution or intervention.

Consider structuring this section with clear, concise statements that showcase impressive figures. For instance, "Increased revenue by 35% within six months" or "Reduced operational costs by $500,000 annually" immediately grab the reader's attention. Pair these metrics with brief explanations of how they were achieved, tying them directly to the actions taken. This approach not only validates your success but also provides context for the reader to understand the significance of the outcomes in relation to the client's initial challenges.

Conclusion: Mastering the Art of Case Study Recap in Executive Summaries

Mastering the art of case study recap is crucial for creating impactful executive summaries. By distilling complex information into concise, actionable insights, you enable decision-makers to grasp key findings quickly. Effective recaps highlight the most significant outcomes, challenges overcome, and lessons learned from each case study.

To excel in case study recaps, focus on presenting a clear narrative that emphasizes the value derived from the project. Utilize data visualization techniques to illustrate key metrics and results. Remember to tailor your language to your audience, ensuring that technical jargon doesn't obscure the main takeaways. By honing these skills, you'll create executive summaries that drive informed decision-making and showcase the true impact of your case studies.

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How to Write an Executive Summary for a Case Study

Updated July 2024: You’re not going to invest your time and energy in reading a case study unless you know it is relevant to your situation. How do you know if it’s relevant? By reading the executive summary. This is why it is so important for you to learn how to write an executive summary for a case study.

In this post, we show you what makes a compelling executive summary for case studies, and provide you with 4 examples from leading B2B SaaS companies.

Every word counts when writing an executive summary for a case study

Executive summaries can be short and sweet.

• Or executive summaries might need to be longer

Sometimes executive summaries miss the mark entirely

• You can do better with your executive summary

This is the third post in a 9-part series on how to write a case study .

When thinking about how to write an executive summary for a case study, you need to create 2 or 3 crucial sentences that provide a concise overview of the case study. It must be informative and:

• summarize the story by introducing the customer and their pain points
• explain what your organization did
• highlight the key results, including 1 or 2 statistics that drive home the takeaway message

Write the executive summary first to help you focus the rest of the case study. But don’t be too rigid: in the process of reviewing the interview transcript or writing the main copy, another point or statistic may emerge as having more impact than what you’ve chosen to highlight. Revisit your executive summary after writing the case study to make sure it’s as strong and accurate as possible.

If you need a hand with your SaaS case studies, have a look at our case study writing service .

This executive summary example from Segment is just a headline followed by a glorified subhead—but it does the trick!

Source: Segmen t

Here’s another great example of a quick, yet helpful executive summary for Plaid’s case study:

Source: Plaid

And here’s one more example of a quick executive summary for G2’s case study:

Sometimes you may need a longer executive summary

For complex case studies, you may need a more in-depth executive summary to give readers an overview of the case study.

Here’s a more fleshed-out executive summary from Feathr:

Source: Feathr

It effectively introduces the challenge and solution, and the results are impossible to miss.

Here’s another great example from Gong. Notice they just use “Challenge” and “Outcome”.

Source: Gong

Source: Bullhorn

This is not an executive summary. It is merely an introduction. We have no idea what the problem or solution is, and there’s nothing to motivate us to read further.

You can do better with your executive summaries

Be precise. Impress the reader with key results. Let them see that you offer solutions that matter.

Get the help you need

As a SaaS company, you need to partner with someone who “gets it”. We are a SaaS content marketing agency that works with high-growth companies like Calendly, ClickUp and WalkMe. Check out our done-for-you case study writing service .

As the founder of Uplift Content, Emily leads her team in creating done-for-you case studies, ebooks and blog posts for high-growth SaaS companies like ClickUp, Calendly and WalkMe. Connect with Emily on Linkedin

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Writing an Executive Summary in Business Docs (+ Examples)

How to write an executive summary for business documents like a business plan, report, marketing plan, proposal, case study, or a project to hook readers.

Jackie Plaza

8 minute read

Short answer

What should an executive summary include.

• Introduction
• Problem or Challenge
• Objective and goals
• Solution or Strategy
• Implementation
• Lessons Learned or Call to Action

There’s an inherent risk to writing a poor executive summary

A poorly written executive summary can lead to missed opportunities, lack of clarity, lost investment, diminished credibility, ineffective decision-making, and wasted time and effort.

I’ve seen it happen too many times… But stick with me and this post will help you avoid these consequences.

Writing an executive summary is an art form. It involves defining a clear objective, condensing key information, writing a great hook, enhancing visual appeal, managing the reader’s expectations, and leaving a gap that piques their interest.

We’ll cover all this and more. Let’s go!

Why are executive summaries important?

An executive summary holds immense significance in effective communication and decision-making processes. It serves as a concise overview of a longer document, capturing the attention of busy executives, stakeholders, or investors.

Let's explore why the executive summary is so crucial and the key reasons you should pay careful attention to its creation:

Concise Communication: An executive summary condenses the main points of a document into a concise format. It allows busy readers to quickly grasp the essential information without having to dive into lengthy reports or proposals.

Capturing Attention: Executives and stakeholders often have limited time and attention spans. An engaging and well-crafted executive summary hooks their interest and encourages them to delve deeper into the details.

Decision-Making Tool: Decision-makers rely on executive summaries to evaluate proposals, make informed choices, and allocate resources. A clear and persuasive summary can significantly impact their decisions and support your desired outcomes.

Alignment and Clarity: An executive summary ensures that all parties involved have a shared understanding of the document's purpose, objectives, and key findings. It helps align perspectives and facilitates efficient collaboration.

Time and Resource Optimization: By providing a succinct overview, an executive summary saves time and effort for both the writer and the reader. It helps streamline communication processes, ensuring that everyone is on the same page.

Standalone Value: An executive summary can also function as a standalone document. In situations where a full report might not be required or feasible, a well-crafted summary can effectively communicate the main points and key takeaways.

An effective executive summary is a strategic component that encapsulates key information concisely, maximizing communication impact and achieving desired outcomes.

Executive summary writing best practices

If I could only tell you one thing about writing executive summaries it would be this: there’s no single winning approach to writing those.

Every time you sit down to write an executive summary, you have to reinvent the wheel and make it 100% tailored to that one customer , that one investor, or that one board member. That said… There are some general tips you should always have at the back of your mind.

• Personalize, personalize, personalize.
• Write it last.
• Avoid cliche phrases.
• Use the right language.
• Keep it as short as possible (but not shorter).

How long should an executive summary be?

The ideal length of an executive summary ranges from 1 to 5 pages or around 10% of the full document's length. This depends on the document's complexity and length. But regardless, the goal is to provide a succinct but comprehensive overview that excites the reader to delve deeper.

If you find yourself struggling with the length of your executive summary, considering using a summary generator . The tool will help with the issue.

How to start an executive summary

To start an executive summary, provide a clear and concise overview of the main document. Begin with a compelling introduction, summarizing key points, goals, and outcomes.

Engage the reader from the start, highlighting the document's significance and setting the stage for the subsequent sections.

How to conclude an executive summary

The best way to conclude an executive summary is by highlighting the significant impact and unique value proposition of your business.

Then end by reiterating what the reader has to gain by reading the rest of the document using concrete language tailored to your target audience.

Executive summary format and outline

There’s no one template for executive summaries you can just copy and fill out.

Depending on what your key selling points are, you’ll need to structure each of your executive summaries differently (much like you’d create different versions of project proposals, business plan introductions , or business reports for different audiences).

1. Introduction : Briefly introduce the company or organization involved in the case study. State the industry or market context.

2. Problem/Challenge: Clearly define the problem or challenge that the company or organization was facing. Discuss the implications of the problem or challenge.

3. Objective: Outline the goals or objectives that the company or organization set out to achieve in response to the problem or challenge.

4. Solution/Strategy: Describe the solution or strategy that was implemented to address the problem or challenge. Discuss why this solution or strategy was chosen over others.

5. Implementation: Detail how the solution or strategy was implemented. Discuss any obstacles or difficulties encountered during the implementation and how they were overcome.

6. Results: Present the results or outcomes of the solution or strategy. Use quantifiable metrics where possible to demonstrate the success of the solution or strategy.

7. Conclusion: Summarize the key points of the case study. Discuss the implications of the results or outcomes for the company or organization, and for the industry or market more broadly.

8. Lessons Learned: Discuss any lessons learned from the case study that could be applied to similar situations in the future.

For proposals a Call to Action instead of Lessons Learned:

Encourage the prospect to get in touch or start a free trial to create the email signature their company needs.

Each building block works together to create a concise, impactful executive summary that compels the reader to further engage with your content.

Make sure that you provide a comprehensive overview while remaining enticing and easy to understand.

Example of how to write an executive summary for a case study

We used this template in Storydoc for our Start-Up Nation Central case study :

1. Introduction: Start-Up Nation Policy Institute (SNPI), a think tank operating under Start-Up Nation Central, an NGO aimed at fostering the development of high-tech companies.

2. Problem/Challenge: SNPI was dissatisfied with the presentation of their business analysis reports, which were primarily produced and distributed as static PDFs.

They felt this format was outdated and ineffective for their tech-savvy audience.

Additionally, they lacked any form of report analytics, leaving them in the dark about who was interacting with their reports and how.

3. Objective: SNPI aimed to modernize their reporting system, seeking a more engaging, interactive format that would appeal to their audience and provide valuable analytics.

4. Solution/Strategy: SNPI adopted Storydoc, a platform that allowed them to transition from static PDFs to interactive reports, enhancing reader engagement and providing valuable content performance analytics.

5. Implementation: The implementation of Storydoc enabled SNPI to produce multiple reports per year, access full reader analytics, and perform easy A/B testing to optimize reader engagement.

6. Results: The transition to Storydoc resulted in positive feedback from stakeholders, increased reader engagement, and valuable insights from report analytics.

The platform's flexibility allowed SNPI to customize their reports to meet their exact needs and use cases.

7. Conclusion: The adoption of Storydoc has significantly improved SNPI's reporting capabilities, reinforcing their branding as a high-tech innovation think tank and providing them with valuable insights into reader behavior.

8. Lessons Learned: The case study highlights the importance of adapting to modern technologies and the needs of your audience.

It also emphasizes the value of analytics in understanding reader behavior and optimizing content for maximum engagement.

Example of how to write an executive summary for a proposal

Here's an executive summary structure based on an amazing proposal by WiseStamp , one of our SaaS clients.

1. Introduction: Introduction to WiseStamp, a centralized email signature manager solution designed to enhance the impact and efficiency of your company's emails.

2. Problem/Challenge: The challenge of unifying the brand, logo, and messaging across all employees' emails, increasing brand awareness, boosting marketing campaigns, and driving sales and lead generation content.

3. Objective: The objective is to provide a solution that saves time and money while leveraging your emails, leading to more email replies, an increase in leads, and increased social reach.

4. Solution/Strategy: WiseStamp offers a solution that allows you to design, generate, manage, and analyze stunning, customized email signatures for your company in less than 5 minutes.

5. Implementation: The implementation process involves a few simple steps: designing a signature customized to your brand and needs, generating a beautiful email signature in a matter of clicks, managing the signature with an advanced email signature manager, and analyzing the signature's impact to turn it into a powerful marketing tool.

6. Results: The use of WiseStamp has led to a 32% increase in email replies, a 15% increase in leads, and a 10% increase in social reach. It has been trusted by over 5,000 companies worldwide and has a rating of 4.6/5 on Capterra.

7. Conclusion: WiseStamp helps companies create unified, professional, and on-brand signatures, offering a solution from a single signature to an entire company solution.

8. Call to Action: Encourage the prospect to get in touch or start a free trial to create the email signature their company needs.

Essential steps for crafting a compelling executive summary:

Crafting an effective executive summary requires careful attention to certain key steps.

By following these guidelines, you can ensure that your summary captures attention, communicates key information, and leaves a lasting impact on your readers.

Let's explore the essential steps for creating an executive summary that gets results.

Step 1. Understand Your Purpose: Before you begin writing, clarify your objective. What message do you want to convey? What are the main points you want to highlight? Understanding your purpose will help you maintain focus throughout the process.

Step 2. Capture Attention with a Strong Introduction : The opening of your executive summary is crucial. Consider using a thought-provoking question, a captivating statistic, or a brief anecdote to engage your readers from the start. Make them eager to continue reading.

Step 3. Highlight Key Information: Identify the most critical points, findings, and recommendations from the full document. Focus on the key takeaways that your audience needs to know. Conciseness is key. Keep your summary brief and to the point.

Step 4. Structure and Format for Readability : Organize your executive summary in a logical and coherent manner. Use headings, bullet points, and white space to enhance readability.

A well-structured summary allows readers to quickly navigate and grasp the main points.

Step 5. Craft a Persuasive Conclusion: End your executive summary with a strong concluding statement that reinforces the main message. Highlight the value and benefits of your proposal or document. This is your last chance to leave a lasting impression.

An effective executive summary should include the following components:

1. Background Information: The first section of an executive summary should provide some background information about the topic at hand. This section should give the reader a basic understanding of the context in which the report or proposal was created.

2. Purpose and Objectives: Next, the executive summary should clearly state the purpose and objectives of the report or proposal. This section should explain why the document was created and what it aims to achieve.

3. Methodology: The methodology section should explain how the report or proposal was developed. It should describe the research methods used, the sources consulted, and any data collection techniques used.

4. Key Findings: One of the most critical sections of an executive summary is the key findings section. This section should summarize the most important findings from the report or proposal.

5. Recommendations: After summarizing the key findings, the executive summary should present the recommendations. This section should outline the action that needs to be taken based on the findings of the report or proposal.

6. Conclusion: Finally, the executive summary should end with a conclusion. This section should provide an overall summary of the report or proposal and reiterate its purpose and objectives.

Common mistakes to avoid in writing an executive summary

Writing an effective executive summary can be challenging, and there are common mistakes to avoid.

1. Failing to understand the audience: When writing an executive summary, it's crucial to know your audience. Understanding their needs and interests will help you tailor your summary to meet their expectations.

2. Overlooking the purpose of the summary: An executive summary should provide a brief overview of the main points in the longer document. It should not include any new information or ideas. Make sure to keep the summary focused and to the point.

3. Including too much information: An executive summary is not meant to be a comprehensive document. It should only cover the essential points, so avoid including any unnecessary details.

4. Failing to highlight the main takeaways: The primary goal of an executive summary is to highlight the key points of the document. Make sure to emphasize the most critical takeaways to ensure your audience understands the main message.

5. Neglecting to edit and proofread: Just like any other document, an executive summary should be well-written, error-free, and easy to read. Neglecting to edit and proofread can result in a summary that's confusing or difficult to understand.

Benefits of using templates to create designed executive summaries

Using StoryDoc templates can be a game-changer when it comes to creating visually appealing executive summaries.

Consistency: Templates ensure a consistent and professional look across all your executive summaries, strengthening your brand image.

Time-Saving: Templates provide a framework that streamlines the process, saving you valuable time while maintaining quality.

Visual Impact: Pre-designed templates offer visually appealing layouts, graphics, and typography, making your summary visually engaging and easy to digest.

Customizability : Templates can be customized to fit your specific needs, allowing you to highlight key information effectively.

Don’t waste time - grab a template!

Hi, I’m Jackie, Creative Marketing Specialist at Storydoc, I write on everything business presentations. I love to research and bring to light critical information that helps marketing, sales, and design teams get better results with their collateral.

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• How to write an executive summary, with ...

How to write an executive summary, with examples

The best way to do that is with an executive summary. If you’ve never written an executive summary, this article has all you need to know to plan, write, and share them with your team.

What is an executive summary?

An executive summary is an overview of a document. The length and scope of your executive summary will differ depending on the document it’s summarizing, but in general an executive summary can be anywhere from one to two pages long. In the document, you’ll want to share all of the information your readers and important stakeholders need to know.

Imagine it this way: if your high-level stakeholders were to only read your executive summary, would they have all of the information they need to succeed? If so, your summary has done its job.

You’ll often find executive summaries of:

Business cases

Project proposals

Research documents

Environmental studies

Market surveys

In general, there are four parts to any executive summary:

Start with the problem or need the document is solving.

Outline the recommended solution.

Explain the solution’s value.

Wrap up with a conclusion about the importance of the work.

What is an executive summary in project management?

In project management, an executive summary is a way to bring clarity to cross-functional collaborators, team leadership, and project stakeholders . Think of it like a project’s “ elevator pitch ” for team members who don’t have the time or the need to dive into all of the project’s details.

The main difference between an executive summary in project management and a more traditional executive summary in a business plan is that the former should be created at the beginning of your project—whereas the latter should be created after you’ve written your business plan. For example, to write an executive summary of an environmental study, you would compile a report on the results and findings once your study was over. But for an executive summary in project management, you want to cover what the project is aiming to achieve and why those goals matter.

The same four parts apply to an executive summary in project management:

Start with the problem or need the project is solving.  Why is this project happening? What insight, customer feedback, product plan, or other need caused it to come to life?

Outline the recommended solution, or the project’s objectives.  How is the project going to solve the problem you established in the first part? What are the project goals and objectives?

Explain the solution’s value.  Once you’ve finished your project, what will happen? How will this improve and solve the problem you established in the first part?

Wrap up with a conclusion about the importance of the work.  This is another opportunity to reiterate why the problem is important, and why the project matters. It can also be helpful to reference your audience and how your solution will solve their problem. Finally, include any relevant next steps.

If you’ve never written an executive summary before, you might be curious about where it fits into other project management elements. Here’s how executive summaries stack up:

Executive summary vs. project plan

A  project plan  is a blueprint of the key elements your project will accomplish in order to hit your project goals and objectives. Project plans will include your goals, success metrics, stakeholders and roles, budget, milestones and deliverables, timeline and schedule, and communication plan .

An executive summary is a summary of the most important information in your project plan. Think of the absolutely crucial things your management team needs to know when they land in your project, before they even have a chance to look at the project plan—that’s your executive summary.

Executive summary vs. project overview

Project overviews and executive summaries often have similar elements—they both contain a summary of important project information. However, your project overview should be directly attached to your project. There should be a direct line of sight between your project and your project overview.

While you can include your executive summary in your project depending on what type of  project management tool  you use, it may also be a stand-alone document.

Executive summary vs. project objectives

Your executive summary should contain and expand upon your  project objectives  in the second part ( Outline the recommended solution, or the project’s objectives ). In addition to including your project objectives, your executive summary should also include why achieving your project objectives will add value, as well as provide details about how you’re going to get there.

The benefits of an executive summary

You may be asking: why should I write an executive summary for my project? Isn’t the project plan enough?

Well, like we mentioned earlier, not everyone has the time or need to dive into your project and see, from a glance, what the goals are and why they matter.  Work management tools  like Asana help you capture a lot of crucial information about a project, so you and your team have clarity on who’s doing what by when. Your executive summary is designed less for team members who are actively working on the project and more for stakeholders outside of the project who want quick insight and answers about why your project matters.

An effective executive summary gives stakeholders a big-picture view of the entire project and its important points—without requiring them to dive into all the details. Then, if they want more information, they can access the project plan or navigate through tasks in your work management tool.

How to write a great executive summary, with examples

Every executive summary has four parts. In order to write a great executive summary, follow this template. Then once you’ve written your executive summary, read it again to make sure it includes all of the key information your stakeholders need to know.

1. Start with the problem or need the project is solving

At the beginning of your executive summary, start by explaining why this document (and the project it represents) matter. Take some time to outline what the problem is, including any research or customer feedback you’ve gotten . Clarify how this problem is important and relevant to your customers, and why solving it matters.

For example, let’s imagine you work for a watch manufacturing company. Your project is to devise a simpler, cheaper watch that still appeals to luxury buyers while also targeting a new bracket of customers.

Example executive summary:

In recent customer feedback sessions, 52% of customers have expressed a need for a simpler and cheaper version of our product. In surveys of customers who have chosen competitor watches, price is mentioned 87% of the time. To best serve our existing customers, and to branch into new markets, we need to develop a series of watches that we can sell at an appropriate price point for this market.

2. Outline the recommended solution, or the project’s objectives

Now that you’ve outlined the problem, explain what your solution is. Unlike an abstract or outline, you should be  prescriptive  in your solution—that is to say, you should work to convince your readers that your solution is the right one. This is less of a brainstorming section and more of a place to support your recommended solution.

Because you’re creating your executive summary at the beginning of your project, it’s ok if you don’t have all of your deliverables and milestones mapped out. But this is your chance to describe, in broad strokes, what will happen during the project. If you need help formulating a high-level overview of your project’s main deliverables and timeline, consider creating a  project roadmap  before diving into your executive summary.

Continuing our example executive summary:

Our new watch series will begin at 20% cheaper than our current cheapest option, with the potential for 40%+ cheaper options depending on material and movement. In order to offer these prices, we will do the following:

Offer watches in new materials, including potentially silicone or wood

Use high-quality quartz movement instead of in-house automatic movement

Introduce customizable band options, with a focus on choice and flexibility over traditional luxury

Note that every watch will still be rigorously quality controlled in order to maintain the same world-class speed and precision of our current offerings.

3. Explain the solution’s value

At this point, you begin to get into more details about how your solution will impact and improve upon the problem you outlined in the beginning. What, if any, results do you expect? This is the section to include any relevant financial information, project risks, or potential benefits. You should also relate this project back to your company goals or  OKRs . How does this work map to your company objectives?

With new offerings that are between 20% and 40% cheaper than our current cheapest option, we expect to be able to break into the casual watch market, while still supporting our luxury brand. That will help us hit FY22’s Objective 3: Expanding the brand. These new offerings have the potential to bring in upwards of three million dollars in profits annually, which will help us hit FY22’s Objective 1: 7 million dollars in annual profit.

Early customer feedback sessions indicate that cheaper options will not impact the value or prestige of the luxury brand, though this is a risk that should be factored in during design. In order to mitigate that risk, the product marketing team will begin working on their go-to-market strategy six months before the launch.

4. Wrap up with a conclusion about the importance of the work

Now that you’ve shared all of this important information with executive stakeholders, this final section is your chance to guide their understanding of the impact and importance of this work on the organization. What, if anything, should they take away from your executive summary?

To round out our example executive summary:

Cheaper and varied offerings not only allow us to break into a new market—it will also expand our brand in a positive way. With the attention from these new offerings, plus the anticipated demand for cheaper watches, we expect to increase market share by 2% annually. For more information, read our  go-to-market strategy  and  customer feedback documentation .

Example of an executive summary

When you put it all together, this is what your executive summary might look like:

Common mistakes people make when writing executive summaries

You’re not going to become an executive summary-writing pro overnight, and that’s ok. As you get started, use the four-part template provided in this article as a guide. Then, as you continue to hone your executive summary writing skills, here are a few common pitfalls to avoid:

Avoid using jargon

Your executive summary is a document that anyone, from project contributors to executive stakeholders, should be able to read and understand. Remember that you’re much closer to the daily work and individual tasks than your stakeholders will be, so read your executive summary once over to make sure there’s no unnecessary jargon. Where you can, explain the jargon, or skip it all together.

Remember: this isn’t a full report

Your executive summary is just that—a summary. If you find yourself getting into the details of specific tasks, due dates, and attachments, try taking a step back and asking yourself if that information really belongs in your executive summary. Some details are important—you want your summary to be actionable and engaging. But keep in mind that the wealth of information in your project will be captured in your  work management tool , not your executive summary.

Make sure the summary can stand alone

You know this project inside and out, but your stakeholders won’t. Once you’ve written your executive summary, take a second look to make sure the summary can stand on its own. Is there any context your stakeholders need in order to understand the summary? If so, weave it into your executive summary, or consider linking out to it as additional information.

Always proofread

Your executive summary is a living document, and if you miss a typo you can always go back in and fix it. But it never hurts to proofread or send to a colleague for a fresh set of eyes.

In summary: an executive summary is a must-have

Executive summaries are a great way to get everyone up to date and on the same page about your project. If you have a lot of project stakeholders who need quick insight into what the project is solving and why it matters, an executive summary is the perfect way to give them the information they need.

For more tips about how to connect high-level strategy and plans to daily execution, read our article about strategic planning .

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How to write an executive summary in 10 steps

Whether presenting a business plan, sharing project updates with stakeholders, or submitting a project proposal, an executive summary helps you grab attention and convey key insights.

Think of it as a condensed version of a document, report, or proposal that highlights the most important information clearly and concisely. It's like a "cheat sheet" that gives you a snapshot of the main points without reading the entire thing.

Throughout the article, we'll explore some examples of executive summaries to give you a better understanding of how they can be applied. Plus, we'll provide you with ready-to-use templates and best practices for writing compelling executive summaries.

What is an executive summary?

An executive summary is a concise overview of a longer document or report. It is typically written for busy executives or decision-makers who may not have the time to read the entire document but still need to grasp its key points and recommendations. 

An effective executive summary should capture the essence of the document, highlighting the most important information in a brief and easily understandable way. It should provide a snapshot of the document's purpose, methodology, major findings, and key recommendations. The summary should be written in a way that allows the reader to quickly grasp the main ideas and make informed decisions based on the information presented.

Why do you need to write one?

For a business owner , an executive summary is one of the most important documents you will have. Like a business plan , they help you lay out the potential value of your business and your potential for success. 

Unlike a business proposal, however, an executive summary is designed to be read in a brief amount of time. That makes them ideal for a variety of uses, like project proposals and research summaries. Sending your strategic plan to a prospective investor or stakeholder likely won’t get you far. But a brief report that clearly states your key findings and what’s in it for them might help you — and your proposal — stand out. It isn't all the details. It's what gets you the meeting to share more.

An executive summary is also a business document that can travel without you. It may be presented to other leaders and potential investors. If it’s written well, it will take on a life of its own. You may find that you get support and resources from places you never imagined.

What should be included in an executive summary?

Your executive summary should include brief descriptions of who your product, service, or proposal is for and your competitive advantage. Be sure to introduce your report concisely yet clearly . Note the most important points and its overall purpose––what do you hope to achieve with this report? 

Also, include any necessary background information and statistics about the industry, high-level information about your business model, necessary financial information, or other insights you discuss in the report. Depending on your proposal, you may want to consider summarizing a market analysis of your target market.

Typically, an executive summary follows a structured format, including sections such as:

• Introduction: Provides a brief background and context for the document.
• Objective or purpose: Clearly states the goal of the document and what it aims to achieve.
• Methodology: Briefly describes the approach, data sources, and methods used to conduct the research or analysis.
• Findings: Summarizes the main findings, conclusions, or results derived from the document.
• Recommendations: Outlines the key recommendations or proposed actions based on the findings.
• Conclusion: Provides a concise wrap-up of the main points and emphasizes the significance of the document.

How do you write an executive summary?

When tackling an executive summary, it's all about following a structured approach to ensure you effectively communicate those crucial points, findings, and recommendations. Let’s walk through some steps and best practices to make it a breeze:

Step 1: Get to know the document

Take the time to dive into the full document or report that your executive summary will be based on. Read it thoroughly and identify the main objectives, key findings, conclusions, and recommendations.

Step 2: Know your audience

Think about who you're writing the executive summary for. Consider their knowledge level, interests, and priorities. This helps you tailor the summary to their needs and make it relevant and impactful.

Step 3: Outline the structure

Create an outline for your executive summary with sections like introduction, objective, methodology, findings, recommendations, and conclusion. This way, you'll have a logical flow that's easy to follow.

Step 4: Start strong

Kick off your executive summary with a captivating opening statement. Make it concise, engaging, and impactful to hook the reader and make them want to keep reading.

Step 5: Summarize objectives and methodology

Give a brief overview of the document's objectives and the methodology used to achieve them. This sets the context and helps the reader understand the approach taken.

Step 6: Highlight key findings

Summarize the main findings, conclusions, or results. Focus on the juiciest and most relevant points that support the document's purpose. Keep it clear and concise to get the message across effectively.

Step 7: Present key recommendations

Outline the important recommendations or proposed actions based on the findings. Clearly state what needs to be done, why it matters, and how it aligns with the document's objectives. Make those recommendations actionable and realistic.

Step 8: Keep it snappy

Remember, an executive summary should be short and sweet. Skip unnecessary details, jargon, or technical language . Use straightforward language that hits the mark.

Step 9: Review and polish

Once you've written the executive summary, give it a careful review for clarity, coherence, and accuracy. Make sure it captures the essence of the full document and represents its content faithfully. Take the extra step to edit out any fluff or repetition.

Step 10: Dress to impress

Consider formatting and presentation. Use headings, bullet points, and formatting styles to make it visually appealing and easy to skim. If it makes sense, include some graphs, charts, or visuals to highlight key points.

Tips for writing an effective executive summary

• Adapt your language and tone to suit your audience.
• Keep things concise and crystal clear—say no to jargon.
• Focus on the most important info that packs a punch.
• Give enough context without overwhelming your reader.
• Use strong and persuasive language to make your recommendations shine.
• Make sure your executive summary makes sense even if the full document isn't read.
• Proofread like a pro to catch any pesky grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors.

Executive summary template for business plans

Here's a general template for creating an executive summary specifically for business plans:

[Your Company Name]

[Business Plan Title]

Business overview

Provide a brief introduction to your company, including its name, location, industry, and mission statement . Describe your unique value proposition and what sets your business apart from competitors.

Market analysis

Summarize the key findings of your market research. Provide an overview of the target market, its size, growth potential, and relevant trends. Highlight your understanding of customer needs, preferences, and behaviors.

Product or service offering

Outline your core products or services, including their key features and benefits. Emphasize how your offerings address customer pain points and provide value. Highlight any unique selling points or competitive advantages.

Business model

Explain your business model and revenue generation strategy. Describe how you will generate revenue, the pricing structure, and any distribution channels or partnerships that contribute to your business's success.

Marketing and sales strategy

Summarize your marketing and sales approach. Highlight the key tactics and channels you will use to reach and attract customers. Discuss your promotional strategies, pricing strategies, and customer acquisition plans.

Management team

Introduce the key members of your management team and their relevant experience. Highlight their expertise and how it positions the team to execute the business plan successfully. Include any notable advisors or board members.

Financial projections

Summarize your financial projections, including revenue forecasts, expected expenses, and projected profitability. Highlight any key financial metrics or milestones. Briefly mention your funding needs, if applicable.

Funding requirements

If seeking funding, outline your funding requirements, including the amount needed, its purpose, and the potential sources of funding you are considering. Summarize the expected return on investment for potential investors.

Reiterate the vision and potential of your business. Summarize the key points of your business plan, emphasizing its viability, market potential, and the expertise of your team. Convey confidence in the success of your venture.

Note: Keep the executive summary concise and focused, typically within one to two pages. Use clear and compelling language, emphasizing the unique aspects of your business. Tailor the template to suit your specific business plan, adjusting sections and details accordingly.

Remember, the executive summary serves as an introduction to your business plan and should pique the reader's interest, conveying the value and potential of your business in a concise and persuasive manner.

Executive summary examples

Every executive summary will be unique to the organization's goals, vision, and brand identity. We put together two general examples of executive summaries to spark your creativity and offer some inspiration. 

These are not intended to be used as-is but more to offer ideas for how you may want to put your own executive summary together. Be sure to personalize your own summary with specific statistics and relevant data points to make the most impact.

Example 1: executive summary for a communications business plan

Introduction:

We're thrilled to present our innovative [insert product] that aims to revolutionize the way people connect and engage. Our vision is to empower individuals and businesses with seamless communication solutions that break barriers and foster meaningful connections.

Market opportunity:

The communications industry is evolving rapidly, and we've identified a significant opportunity in the market. With the proliferation of remote work, the need for reliable and efficient communication tools has skyrocketed. Our extensive market research indicates a demand for solutions that prioritize user experience, security, and flexibility.

Product offering:

At [Company Name], we've developed a suite of cutting-edge communication tools designed to meet the diverse needs of our customers. Our flagship product is a unified communication platform that integrates voice, video, messaging, and collaboration features into a seamless user experience. We also offer customizable solutions for businesses of all sizes, catering to their unique communication requirements.

Unique value proposition:

What sets us apart from the competition? Our user-centric approach and commitment to innovation. We prioritize user experience by creating intuitive interfaces and seamless interactions. Our solutions are scalable, adaptable, and designed to keep up with evolving technological trends. By combining ease of use with advanced features, we deliver unparalleled value to our customers.

Target market:

Our primary focus is on small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that require efficient and cost-effective communication tools. We also cater to individuals, remote teams, and larger enterprises seeking reliable and secure communication solutions. Our target market encompasses industries such as technology, finance, healthcare, and professional services.

Business model:

To generate revenue, we employ a subscription-based business model. Customers can choose from different plans tailored to their specific needs, paying a monthly or annual fee. We also offer additional services such as customization, integration, and customer support, creating additional revenue streams and fostering long-term customer relationships.

Marketing and sales strategy:

Our marketing strategy centers around building brand awareness through targeted digital campaigns, content marketing, and strategic partnerships. We'll leverage social media, industry influencers, and online communities to reach our target audience. Additionally, our sales team will engage in proactive outreach, nurturing leads and providing personalized consultations to convert prospects into loyal customers.

Team and expertise:

Our team is composed of experienced professionals with a deep understanding of the communications industry. Led by our visionary founder and supported by a skilled and diverse team, we have the expertise to drive innovation, develop robust products, and deliver exceptional customer service. We're passionate about our mission and dedicated to making a lasting impact in the market.

Financial projections:

Based on extensive market research and financial analysis, we anticipate strong growth and profitability. Our financial projections indicate steady revenue streams, with increasing customer adoption and market share. We're committed to managing costs effectively, optimizing our resources, and continuously reinvesting in research and development.

Funding requirements:

To fuel our ambitious growth plans and accelerate product development, we're seeking [funding amount] in funding. These funds will be allocated towards expanding our team, scaling our infrastructure, marketing efforts, and ongoing product innovation. We believe this investment will position us for success and solidify our market presence.

Conclusion:

In summary, [Company Name] is poised to disrupt the communications industry with our innovative solutions and customer-centric approach. We're ready to make a positive impact by empowering individuals and businesses to communicate effectively and effortlessly. Join us on this exciting journey as we redefine the future of communication. Together, we'll shape a connected world like never before.

Example 2: executive summary for a project proposal

[Project Name]

[Project Proposal Date]

Hello! We're thrilled to present our project proposal for [Project Name]. This executive summary will provide you with a high-level overview of the project, its objectives, and the value it brings.

Project overview:

Our project aims to [describe the project's purpose and scope]. It's a response to [identify the problem or opportunity] and has the potential to bring significant benefits to [stakeholders or target audience]. Through meticulous planning and execution, we're confident in our ability to achieve the desired outcomes.

Objectives:

The primary goal of our project is to [state the overarching objective]. In addition, we have specific objectives such as [list specific objectives]. By accomplishing these goals, we'll create a positive impact and drive meaningful change.

Our proposed approach for this project is based on a thorough analysis of the situation and best practices. We'll adopt a structured methodology that includes [describe the key project phases or activities]. This approach ensures efficient utilization of resources and maximizes project outcomes.

The benefits of this project are truly exciting. Through its implementation, we anticipate [describe the anticipated benefits or outcomes]. These benefits include [list specific benefits], which will have a lasting and positive effect on [stakeholders or target audience].

Implementation timeline:

We've devised a comprehensive timeline to guide the project from initiation to completion. The project is divided into distinct phases, with well-defined milestones and deliverables. Our timeline ensures that tasks are executed in a timely manner, allowing us to stay on track and deliver results.

Resource requirements:

To successfully execute this project, we've identified the key resources needed. This includes [list the resources required, such as human resources, technology, equipment, and funding]. We're confident in our ability to secure the necessary resources and allocate them effectively to ensure project success.

A project of this nature requires a well-planned budget. Based on our analysis, we've estimated the required funding to be [state the budget amount]. This budget encompasses all project-related costs and aligns with the anticipated benefits and outcomes.

Our project proposal is an exciting opportunity to address [the problem or opportunity] and create tangible value for [stakeholders or target audience]. With a clear vision, defined objectives, and a robust implementation plan, we're ready to embark on this journey. Join us as we bring this project to life and make a lasting impact. 

Is an executive summary the same as a project plan?

While both are important components of project management and documentation , they serve different purposes and contain distinct information.

An executive summary, as discussed earlier, is a concise overview of a longer document or report. It provides a snapshot of the key points, findings, and recommendations. It focuses on high-level information and aims to provide an overview of the document's purpose, methodology, findings, and recommendations.

On the other hand, a project plan is a detailed document that outlines the specific activities, tasks, timelines, resources, and milestones associated with a project. It serves as a roadmap for project execution, providing a comprehensive understanding of how the project will be carried out.

A project plan typically includes objectives, scope, deliverables, schedule, budget, resource allocation, risk management, and communication strategies. It is intended for project team members, stakeholders, and those directly involved in the execution.

In summary, an executive summary offers a condensed overview of a document's key points, while a project plan provides a comprehensive and detailed roadmap for executing a project.

Executive summaries vs. abstracts

An executive summary is not the same as an abstract. Executive summaries focus on the main points of a proposal. They highlight when and why a reader should invest in the company or project.

An abstract, on the other hand, concentrates on what the business does and its marketing plan. It typically doesn’t include detailed information about finances.

While it is usually compelling, it’s less of an elevator pitch and more of a summary. The goal of an abstract is to inform, not to persuade. On the other hand, the goal of an executive summary is to give readers who are pressed for time just enough information that they’ll want to look further into your proposition.

When do you use an executive summary?

An executive summary is used in various situations where there is a need to present a condensed overview of a longer document or report. Here are some common instances when an executive summary is used:

• Business proposals: When submitting a business proposal to potential investors, partners, or stakeholders, an executive summary is often included. It provides a concise overview of the proposal, highlighting the key aspects such as the business idea, market analysis, competitive advantage, financial projections, and recommended actions.
• Reports and research studies: Lengthy reports or research studies often include an executive summary at the beginning. This allows decision-makers, executives, or other stakeholders to quickly understand the purpose, methodology, findings, and recommendations of the report without going through the entire document.
• Project updates: During the course of a project, project managers may prepare executive summaries to provide updates to stakeholders or higher-level management. These summaries give a brief overview of the project's progress, achievements, challenges, and upcoming milestones.
• Strategic plans: When developing strategic plans for an organization, an executive summary is often included to provide an overview of the plan's goals, objectives, strategies, and key initiatives. It allows executives and stakeholders to grasp the essence of the strategic plan and its implications without reading the entire document.
• Funding requests: When seeking funding for a project or venture, an executive summary is commonly used as part of the funding proposal. It provides a succinct summary of the project, highlighting its significance, potential impact, financial requirements, and expected outcomes.

In general, an executive summary is used whenever there is a need to communicate the main points, findings, and recommendations of a document concisely and efficiently to individuals who may not have the time or inclination to read the entire content. It serves as a valuable tool for understanding and facilitates quick decision-making.

5 ways project managers can use executive summaries

Project managers can use executive summaries in various ways to effectively communicate project updates, status reports, or proposals to stakeholders and higher-level management. Here are some ways project managers can use executive summaries:

• Project status updates: Project managers can provide regular executive summaries to stakeholders and management to communicate the current status of the project. The summary should include key achievements, milestones reached, challenges encountered, and any adjustments to the project plan. It allows stakeholders to quickly grasp the project's progress and make informed decisions or provide guidance as needed.
• Project proposals: When pitching a project idea or seeking approval for a new project, project managers can prepare an executive summary to present the essential aspects of the project. The summary should outline the project's objectives, scope, anticipated benefits, resource requirements, estimated timeline, and potential risks. It helps decision-makers understand the project's value and make an informed choice about its initiation.
• Project closure reports: At the end of a project, project managers can prepare an executive summary as part of the project closure report. The summary should highlight the project's overall success, key deliverables achieved, lessons learned, and recommendations for future projects. It provides a concise overview of the project's outcomes and acts as a valuable reference for future initiatives.
• Steering committee meetings: When project managers present updates or seek guidance from a steering committee or governance board, an executive summary can be an effective tool. The summary should cover the important aspects of the project, such as progress, issues, risks, and upcoming milestones. It ensures that decision-makers are well-informed about the project's status and can provide relevant guidance or support.
• Change requests: When submitting a change request for a project, project managers can include an executive summary to summarize the proposed change, its impact on the project, potential risks, and benefits. It helps stakeholders and decision-makers quickly assess the change request and make informed decisions about its implementation.

Using executive summaries, project managers can efficiently communicate project-related information to stakeholders, executives, and decision-makers. The summaries provide a concise overview of the project's status, proposals, or closure reports, allowing stakeholders to quickly understand the key points and take appropriate action.

When should you not use an executive summary?

While executive summaries are widely used in many situations, there are some cases where they may not be necessary or suitable. Here are a few scenarios where an executive summary may not be appropriate, along with alternative approaches:

• Highly technical documents: If the document contains highly technical or specialized information that requires a detailed understanding, an executive summary alone may not be sufficient. In such cases, it is better to provide the complete document and supplement it with explanatory materials, presentations , or meetings where experts can explain and discuss the technical details.
• Personal or creative writing: Executive summaries are typically used for informational or analytical documents. If the content is more personal in nature, such as a memoir, novel, or creative piece, an executive summary may not be relevant. Instead, focus on providing an engaging introduction or book blurb that entices readers and conveys the essence of the work.
• Short documents: If the document itself is already concise and can be easily read in its entirety, an executive summary may be redundant. In these cases, it is more effective to present the complete document without an additional summary.
• Interactive presentations: In situations where you can present information interactively, such as in meetings, workshops, or conferences, it may be more effective to engage the audience directly rather than relying solely on an executive summary. Use visual aids, demonstrations, discussions, and Q&A sessions to convey the necessary information and capture the audience's attention.

Final thoughts on writing a compelling executive summary

An executive summary isn’t the kitchen sink — it’s the bells and whistles. Geared toward busy decision-makers, these one-pagers communicate your case for action and proposed solutions. When it’s written well, your audience will walk away with an understanding of what needs to be done, why it needs to happen, and why they should help it move forward. 

But writing it well doesn’t just mean spell-checking. It means tailoring your communication to an influential, yet busy and distracted audience. To be effective, you’ll need to write your proposal with empathy and an understanding of what matters to them .

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Allaya Cooks-Campbell

With over 15 years of content experience, Allaya Cooks Campbell has written for outlets such as ScaryMommy, HRzone, and HuffPost. She holds a B.A. in Psychology and is a certified yoga instructor as well as a certified Integrative Wellness & Life Coach. Allaya is passionate about whole-person wellness, yoga, and mental health.

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How to Write an Executive Summary (Example & Template Included)

Here’s the good news: an executive summary is short. It’s part of a larger document like a business plan, business case or project proposal and, as the name implies, summarizes the longer report.

Here’s the bad news: it’s a critical document that can be challenging to write because an executive summary serves several important purposes. On one hand, executive summaries are used to outline each section of your business plan, an investment proposal or project proposal. On the other hand, they’re used to introduce your business or project to investors and other stakeholders, so they must be persuasive to spark their interest.

What Is an Executive Summary?

An executive summary is a short section of a larger document like a business plan , investment proposal or project proposal. It’s mostly used to give investors and stakeholders a quick overview of important information about a business plan like the company description, market analysis and financial information.

It contains a short statement that addresses the problem or proposal detailed in the attached documents and features background information, a concise analysis and a conclusion. An executive summary is designed to help executives and investors decide whether to go forth with the proposal, making it critically important. Pitch decks are often used along with executive summaries to talk about the benefits and main selling points of a business plan or project.

Unlike an abstract, which is a short overview, an executive summary format is a condensed form of the documents contained in the proposal. Abstracts are more commonly used in academic and research-oriented writing and act as a teaser for the reader to see if they want to read on.

Executive Summary Format & Template

To put all of that information together, here’s the basic format of an executive summary. You can find this same information in our free executive summary template :

• Introduction, be sure to know your audience
• Table of contents in the form of a bulleted list
• Explain the company’s role and identify strengths
• Explain the need, or the problem, and its importance
• Recommend a solution and explain its value
• Justify said solution by explaining how it fits the organization
• A strong conclusion that once more wraps up the importance of the project

You can use it as an executive summary example and add or remove some of its elements to adjust it to your needs. Our sample executive summary has the main elements that you’ll need project executive summary.

How to Write an Executive Summary

The pressure of writing an executive summary comes from the fact that everyone will pay attention to it, as it sits at the top of that heap of documents. It explains all that follows and can make or break your business plan or project plan . The executive summary must know the needs of the potential clients or investors and zero in on them like a laser. Fortunately, we’ll show you how to write and format your executive summary to do just that.

Executive summaries vary depending on the document they’re attached to. You can write an executive summary for a business plan, project proposal, research document, or business case, among other documents and reports. However, when writing an executive summary, there are guidelines to ensure you hit all the bases.

Executive Summary Length

According to the many books that have been written about executive summaries, as well as training courses, seminars and professional speakers, the agreed-upon length for an executive summary format should be about five to 10 percent of the length of the whole report.

Appropriate Language

The language used should be appropriate for the target audience. One of the most important things to know before you write professionally is to understand who you’re addressing. If you’re writing for a group of engineers, the language you’ll use will differ greatly from how you would write to a group of financiers.

That includes more than just the words, but the content and depth of explanation. Remember, it’s a summary, and people will be reading it to quickly and easily pull out the main points.

Pithy Introduction

You also want to capture a reader’s attention immediately in the opening paragraph. Just like a speech often opens with a joke to break the tension and put people at ease, a strong introductory paragraph can pull a reader in and make them want to read on. That doesn’t mean you start with a joke. Stick to your strengths, but remember, most readers only give you a few sentences to win them over before they move on.

Don’t forget to explain who you are as an organization and why you have the skills, personnel and experience to solve the problem raised in the proposal. This doesn’t have to be a lengthy biography, often just your name, address and contact information will do, though you’ll also want to highlight your strengths as they pertain to the business plan or project proposal .

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Executive Summary Template

Use this free Executive Summary Template for Word to manage your projects better.

Relevant Information

The executive summary shouldn’t stray from the material that follows it. It’s a summary, not a place to bring up new ideas. To do so would be confusing and would jeopardize your whole proposal.

Establish the need or the problem, and convince the target audience that it must be solved. Once that’s set up, it’s important to recommend the solution and show what the value is. Be clear and firm in your recommendation.

Justify your cause. Be sure to note the key reasons why your organization is the perfect fit for the solution you’re proposing. This is the point where you differentiate yourself from competitors, be that due to methodology, testimonials from satisfied clients or whatever else you offer that’s unique. But don’t make this too much about you. Be sure to keep the name of the potential client at the forefront.

Don’t neglect a strong conclusion, where you can wrap things up and once more highlight the main points.

Related: 10 Essential Excel Report Templates

What to Include in an Executive Summary

The content of your executive summary must reflect what’s in the larger document which it is part of. You’ll find many executive summary examples on the web, but to keep things simple, we’ll focus on business plans and project proposals.

Getting everything organized for your executive summary can be challenging. ProjectManager can help you get your thoughts in order and collaborate with your team. Our powerful task management tools make it easy to get everything prioritized and done on time. Try it free today.

How to Write an Executive Summary for a Business Plan

As we’ve learned above, your executive summary must extract the main points of all the sections of your business plan. A business plan is a document that describes all the aspects of a business, such as its business model, products or services, objectives and marketing plan , among other things. They’re commonly used by startups to pitch their ideas to investors.

Here are the most commonly used business plan sections:

• Company description: Provide a brief background of your company, such as when it was established, its mission, vision and core values.
• Products & services: Describe the products or services your company will provide to its customers.
• Organization and management: Explain the legal structure of your business and the members of the top management team.
• SWOT analysis: A SWOT analysis explains the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of your business. They describe the internal and external factors that impact your business competitiveness.
• Industry & market analysis: This section should provide an overview of the industry and market in which your business will compete.
• Operations: Explain the main aspects of your business operations and what sets it apart from competitors.
• Marketing plan: Your marketing plan describes the various strategies that your business will use to reach its customers and sell products or services.
• Financial planning: Here, you should provide an overview of the financial state of your business. Include income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements.
• Funding request: If you’re creating your business plan to request funding, make sure to explain what type of funding you need, the timeframe for your funding request and an explanation of how the funds will be used.

We’ve created an executive summary example to help you better understand how this document works when using it, to sum up a business plan.

Executive Summary Example

For this executive summary example, we’ll imagine a company named ABC Clothing, a small business that manufactures eco-friendly clothing products and it’s preparing a business plan to secure funding from new investors.

Company Description We are ABC Clothing, an environmentally-friendly manufacturer of apparel. We’ve developed a unique method of production and sourcing of materials that allows us to create eco-friendly products at a low cost . We have intellectual property for our production processes and materials, which gives us an advantage in the market.

• Mission: Our mission is to use recycled materials and sustainable methods of production to create clothing products that are great for our customers and our planet.
• Vision: Becoming a leader in the apparel industry while generating a positive impact on the environment.

Products & Services We offer high-quality clothing products for men, women and all genders. (Here you should include pictures of your product portfolio to spark the interest of your readers)

Industry & Market Analysis Even though the fashion industry’s year-over-year growth has been affected by pandemics in recent years, the global apparel market is expected to continue growing at a steady pace. In addition, the market share of sustainable apparel has grown year-over-year at a higher pace than the overall fashion industry.

Marketing Plan Our marketing plan relies on the use of digital marketing strategies and online sales, which gives us a competitive advantage over traditional retailers that focus their marketing efforts on brick-and-mortar stores.

Operations Our production plant is able to recycle different types of plastic and cotton waste to turn it into materials that we use to manufacture our products . We’ve partnered with a transportation company that sorts and distributes our products inside the United States efficiently and cost-effectively.

Financial Planning Our business is profitable, as documented in our balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement. The company doesn’t have any significant debt that might compromise its continuity. These and other financial factors make it a healthy investment.

Funding Request We’re requesting funding for the expansion of our production capacity, which will allow us to increase our production output in order to meet our increasing customer demand, enter new markets, reduce our costs and improve our competitiveness.

If you’d like to see more executive summary examples for your business plan, you can visit the U.S. small business administration website. They have business plans with executive summary examples you can download and use.

Executive summaries are also a great way to outline the elements of a project plan for a project proposal. Let’s learn what those elements are.

How to Write an Executive Summary for a Project Proposal

An executive summary for your project proposal will capture the most important information from your project management plan. Here’s the structure of our executive summary template:

• Introduction: What’s the purpose of your project?
• Company description: Show why you’re the right team to take on the project.
• Need/problem: What is the problem that it’s solving?
• Unique solution: What is your value proposition and what are the main selling points of your project?
• Proof: Evidence, research and feasibility studies that support how your company can solve the issue.
• Resources: Outline the resources needed for the project
• Return on investment/funding request: Explain the profitability of your project and what’s in for the investors.
• Competition/market analysis: What’s your target market? Who are your competitors? How does your company differentiate from them?
• Marketing plan: Create a marketing plan that describes your company’s marketing strategies, sales and partnership plans.
• Budget/financial planning: What’s the budget that you need for your project plan?
• Timeline: What’s the estimated timeline to complete the project?
• Team: Who are the project team members and why are they qualified?
• Conclusions:  What are the project takeaways?

Now that we’ve learned that executive summaries can vary depending on the type of document you’re working on, you’re ready for the next step.

What to Do After Writing an Executive Summary

As with anything you write, you should always start with a draft. The first draft should hit all the marks addressed above but don’t bog yourself down in making the prose perfect. Think of the first draft as an exploratory mission. You’re gathering all the pertinent information.

Next, you want to thoroughly review the document to ensure that nothing important has been left out or missed. Make sure the focus is sharp and clear, and that it speaks directly to your potential client’s needs.

Proofread for Style & Grammar

But don’t neglect the writing. Be sure that you’re not repeating words, falling into cliché or other hallmarks of bad writing. You don’t want to bore the reader to the point that they miss the reason why you’re the organization that can help them succeed.

You’ve checked the content and the prose, but don’t forget the style. You want to write in a way that’s natural and not overly formal, but one that speaks in the manner of your target audience . If they’re a conservative firm, well then, maybe formality is called for. But more and more modern companies have a casual corporate culture, and formal writing could mistakenly cause them to think of you as old and outdated.

The last run should be proofing the copy. That means double-checking to ensure that spelling is correct, and there are no typos or grammatical mistakes. Whoever wrote the executive summary isn’t the best person to edit it, however. They can easily gloss over errors because of their familiarity with the work. Find someone who excels at copy-editing. If you deliver sloppy content, it shows a lack of professionalism that’ll surely color how a reader thinks of your company.

Criticism of Executive Summaries

While we’re advocating for the proper use of an executive summary, it’d be neglectful to avoid mentioning some critiques. The most common is that an executive summary by design is too simple to capture the complexity of a large and complicated project.

It’s true that many executives might only read the summary, and in so doing, miss the nuance of the proposal. That’s a risk. But if the executive summary follows the guidelines stated above, it should give a full picture of the proposal and create interest for the reader to delve deeper into the documents to get the details.

Remember, executive summaries can be written poorly or well. They can fail to focus on results or the solution to the proposal’s problem or do so in a vague, general way that has no impact on the reader. You can do a hundred things wrong, but if you follow the rules, then the onus falls on the reader.

ProjectManager Turns an Executive Summary Into a Project

Your executive summary got the project approved. Now the real work begins. ProjectManager is award-winning project management software that helps you organize tasks, projects and teams. We have everything you need to manage each phase of your project, so you can complete your work on time and under budget.

Work How You Want

Because project managers and teams work differently, our software is flexible. We have multiple project views, such as the kanban board, which visualizes workflow. Managers like the transparency it provides in the production cycle, while teams get to focus only on those tasks they have the capacity to complete. Are you more comfortable with tasks lists or Gantt charts? We have those, too.

Live Tracking for Better Management

To ensure your project meets time and cost expectations, we have features that monitor and track progress so you can control any deviations that might occur. Our software is cloud-based, so the data you see on our dashboard is always up to date, helping you make better decisions. Make that executive summary a reality with ProjectManager.

You’ve now researched and written a persuasive executive summary to lead your proposal. You’ve put in the work and the potential client sees that and contracts you for the project. However, if you don’t have a reliable set of project management tools like Gantt charts , kanban boards and project calendars at hand to plan, monitor and report on the work, then all that preparation will be for nothing.

ProjectManager is online project management software that gives you real-time data and a collaborative platform to work efficiently and productively. But don’t take our word for it, take a free 30-day trial.

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How To Write A High-Impact Executive Summary

By Derek Jansen | January 2018

In this post, I’ll deconstruct the often-misunderstood executive summary and show you how to develop a high-impact executive summary for your assignment, research report or even your dissertation or thesis.

So, what is an executive summary?

An executive summary (sometimes called an abstract ) is quite simply a summary of summaries. In other words, an executive summary provides a concise summary of each of your assignment or report chapters/sections . More specifically, it should communicate the key points/insights/findings/suggestions from the following chapters:

• Introduction
• Recommendations
• Implementation (if applicable)
• Reflection (if applicable)

I’ll discuss which key points from each section need to be addressed a bit later. On a separate note – if you’re writing an executive summary for a dissertation or thesis, all of the concepts described in this post will still apply to you, however, you’ll include an additional paragraph about your methodology, and you’ll likely spend more word count discussing your analysis findings.

The 4 Important Attributes Of An Exec Summary

Before I discuss what goes into the executive summary, let’s quickly look at 4 attributes that make for a strong executive summary:

#1 – It should be able to stand alone.

The executive summary should be able to stand independently as an informative document . In other words, the reader should be able to grasp your broad argument without having to read the full document. Further reading should be purely for attaining more detail. Simply put, the executive summary should be a “Mini-Me” of the assignment.

This independence means that anything you write in the executive summary will need to be re-stated in the body of your assignment. A common mistake that students make is to introduce key points in the executive summary and then not discuss them again in the document – accordingly, the marker must view the main document as missing these key points. Simply put – make sure you discuss key points in both the executive summary and the main body . It will feel repetitive at times – this is normal.

#2 – It should be written for the intelligent layman.

When crafting your executive summary, its useful to keep the intelligent layman front of mind. What I mean by this is that you should write your summary assuming that your reader (i.e. the marker) will be intelligent but won’t be familiar with your topic and/or industry. This means that you should explain any technical concepts, avoid jargon and explain acronyms before using them.

#3 – It should be concise.

Typically, your executive summary should be a one-pager (one and a half pages at worst). To summarise a 3000 – 5000-word document into one page is no easy task, so you’ll need to:

• Present only the most important information (key insights, recommendations, etc).
• Write concisely – i.e. with brevity and completeness.

To the first point, I’ll explain what the “most important” information is for each chapter shortly. To the second point (writing concisely), there are various ways to do this, including:

• Using simple, straightforward language.
• Using the active voice.
• Removing bloaty adverbs and adjectives.
• Reducing prepositional phrases.
• Avoiding noun strings.

Does this sound like gibberish to you? Don’t worry! The Writing Center at the University of Wisconson-Madison provides a practical guide to writing more concisely, which you can download here.

On a related note, you typically would not include headings, citations or bulleted/numbered lists in your executive summary. These visual components tend to use a lot of space, which comes at a premium, as you know.

#4 – It should be written last.

Given that your executive summary is a summary of summaries, it needs to be written last , only once you’ve identified all your key insights, recommendations and so on. This probably sounds obvious, but many students start writing the summary first (potentially because of its position in the document) and then end up re-writing it multiple times, or they don’t rewrite it and consequently end up with an executive summary which is misaligned with the main document.

Simply put, you should leave this section until everything else is completed. Once your core body content is completed, you should read through the entire document again and create a bullet-point list of all the key points . From this list, you should then craft your executive summary . The approach will also help you identify gaps, contradictions and misalignments in your main document.

So, what goes into an executive summary?

Right, let’s get into the meat of it and consider what exactly should go into your executive summary. As I’ve mentioned, you need to present only the absolutely key point points from each of your chapters, but what does this mean exactly?

Each chapter will typically take the form of 1 paragraph (with no headings) in your executive summary. So, 5 chapters means 5 paragraphs. Naturally, some will be longer than others (let this be informed by the mark allocation), but assuming one page contains 500 words, you’re aiming for roughly 100 words per paragraph (assuming a 5-paragraph structure). See why conciseness is key!

Now, let’s look at what the key points are for each chapter in the case of a typical MBA assignment or report. In the case of a dissertation or thesis, the paragraph structure would still mimic the chapter structure – you’d just have more chapters, and therefore, more paragraphs.

Paragraph 1: Introduction

This paragraph should cover the following points:

• A very brief explanation of the business (what does it do, for whom and where?).
• Clear identification and explanation of the problem or opportunity that will be the focus of the assignment/report.
• A clear statement of the purpose of the assignment (i.e. what research questions will you seek to answer?).
• Brief mention of what data sources were utilised (i.e. secondary research) and any fieldwork undertaken (i.e. primary research ).

In other words, your first paragraph should introduce the business, the problem/opportunity to be addressed, why it’s important, and how you approached your analysis. This paragraph should make it clear to the reader what the assignment is all about at a broad level. Here’s a practical example:

This assignment focuses on ABC Ltd, a XXX business based in XXX, which provides XXX to XXX customers. To date, the firm has relied almost exclusively on XXX marketing channel. Consequently, ABC Ltd has little understanding of consumer segments, wants, and needs. This marketing channel is now under regulatory threat due to XXX.  The core challenge, therefore, is that whilst ABC Ltd seeks to grow its market share, it has little understanding of its market characteristics or competitive set, and its sole marketing channel under regulatory threat. Accordingly, the objective of this assignment is XXX. The assignment draws on survey, interview, and industry data.

Paragraph 2: Analysis and findings

In this paragraph, you should discuss the following:

• What exactly did you analyse? For example, you might have analysed the macro context (i.e. PESTLE analysis), followed by the meso (i.e. competitor or industry analysis) and then the micro (i.e. internal organisational analysis).
• What were your key findings in relation to the purpose of the assignment? For example, you may have identified 4 potential causes of a problem and would then state them.

In other words, your second paragraph should concisely explain what you analysed and what your main findings were . An example of this:

Segmentation analysis, consisting of macro, industry and firm-level analyses, revealed a strong segmentation variable in the form of XXX, with distinct needs in each segment. Macro analysis revealed XXX, while industry and firm-level analyses suggested XXX. Subsequently, three potential target segments were established, namely XXX, XXX and XXX.  These were then evaluated using the Directional Policy Matrix, and the results indicated XXX.

From a presentation perspective, you might structure this section as:

• Analysis 1, findings from analysis 1.
• Analysis 2, findings from analysis 2.
• Analysis 3, findings from analysis 3.

Importantly, you should only discuss the findings that are directly linked to the research questions (i.e. the purpose of the assignment) – don’t digress into interesting but less relevant findings. Given that the analysis chapter typically counts for a large proportion of marks, you could viably write 2-3 paragraphs for this. Be guided by the mark allocation.

Lastly, you should ensure that the findings you present here align well with the recommendations you’ll make in the next paragraph. Think about what your recommendations are, and, if necessary, reverse engineer this paragraph to create a strong link and logical flow from analysis to recommendations.

Paragraph 3: Recommendations

With the key findings from your analysis presented in the preceding paragraph, you should now discuss the following:

• What are your key recommendations?
• How do these solve the problems you found in your analysis?
• Were there any further conclusions?

Simply put, this paragraph (or two) should present the main recommendations and justify their use (i.e. explain how they resolve the key issue). As mentioned before, it’s critically important that your recommendations tightly align with (and resolve) the key issues that you identified in the analysis. An example:

Based on the Directional Policy Matrix analysis, it is recommended that the firm target XXX segment, because of XXX. On this basis, a positioning of XXX is proposed, as this aligns with the segment’s key needs. Furthermore, a provisional high-level marketing mix is proposed. The key aspects of the marketing mix include XXX, XXX and XXX, as these align with the firm’s positioning of XXX. By adopting these recommendations, the key issue of XXX will be resolved.

Also, note that (typically) the tone changes from past to present tense when you get to the recommendations section.

Paragraph 4: Implementation

If your assignment brief requires an implementation/project plan-type section, this paragraph will typically include the following points:

• Time requirements (how long will it take?)
• People requirements (what skills are needed and where do you find them?)
• Money requirements (what budget is required?)
• How will the project or change be managed? (i.e. project management plan)
• What risks exist and how will these be managed?

Depending on what level of detail is required by your assignment brief, you may need to present more, less or other details in this section. As always, be guided by the assignment brief.

A practical example:

A high-level implementation plan is proposed, including a stakeholder analysis, project plan and business case. Resource requirements are presented, detailing XXX, XXX and XXX requirements. A risk analysis is presented, revealing key risks including XXX, XXX and XXX. Risk management solutions are proposed, including XXX and XXX.  

Paragraph 5: Reflection

As with the implementation chapter, the need for a reflection chapter/section will vary between assignments and universities. If your assignment has this requirement, it’s typically good to cover the following points:

• What were your key learnings? What were your ah-ha moments?
• What has changed in the real world as a consequence of these learnings? I.e. how has your actual behaviour and approach to “X” changed, if any?
• What are the benefits and/or disadvantages of this change, if any?

This section is very personal, and so each person’s reflections will be different. Don’t take the above points as gospel.

Time to test it out.

Once you’ve written up your executive summary and feel confident that it’s in good shape, it’s time to test it out on an unsuspecting intelligent layman. This is a critically important step, since you, as the writer, are simply too close to the work to judge whether it all makes sense to a first-time reader. In fact, you are the least suitable person on the planet!

So, find someone who is not familiar with your assignment topic (and ideally, not familiar with your industry), and ask them to have a read through your executive summary. Friends and family will usually tell you its great, regardless of the quality, so you need to test them on their understanding. Do this by asking them to give the details back to you in their own words. Poke and prod – can they tell you what the key issues and recommendations were (in their own words!). You’ll quickly spot the gaps this way, and be able to flesh out any weak areas.

  Wrapping up.

In this post, I’ve discussed how to write the all too often undercooked executive summary. I’ve discussed some important attributes of a strong executive summary, as well as the contents that typically go into it. To recap on the key points:

The key attributes of a high-impact executive summary:

• It should be able to stand alone.
• It should be written for the intelligent layman.
• It should be concise.
• It should be written last.

The key contents of a high-impact executive summary:

Each paragraph should cover a chapter from the document. For example, In the case of a typical assignment, it would be something like:

• Summary of the introduction chapter.
• Summary of the analysis chapter.
• Summary of the recommendations and/or conclusions chapter.
• Depending – summary of the implementation and reflection.

Lastly, don’t forget to test out your executive summary on an unsuspecting layman or two. This is probably the most important step of them all!

If you have any questions or suggestions, we’d love to hear from you. Please get in touch here or leave a comment below.

Thanks so much for your methodical process and explanation of Executive Summary. It is exactly what I was researching for.

Regards Saane

It’s a pleasure!

This was really helpful with how to structure my assignment.

Thank you so much for the step by step process. It’s so helpful for beginners like me.

Great! This post is very informative and gives clear guidance on to write an executive summary. Thanks very much for sharing this information, it’s very helpful.

Thanks for the feedback, Anna. Best of luck with your writing 🙂

Thank you for the great article, really helped explain what was needed.

Great insight and tips . Thanks

Thank you so much for sharing this. It was exactly what I was looking for.

Thank you for your help

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How to write an effective case study: A comprehensive guide

Case studies are powerful tools for analyzing real-life situations, making informed decisions, and applying theoretical knowledge to practical problems.

Whether used in business, education, healthcare, or other fields, case studies require a deep understanding of the context, key players, and the complex dynamics at play.

This guide will walk you through the essential steps for developing a comprehensive and effective case study, from defining the objective to presenting a well-supported resolution.

Table of Contents

What is a case study?

A case study is a written summary or synthesis of a real-life situation, typically based on data and research.

Unlike hypothetical scenarios, case studies deal with actual events and decisions that need to be analyzed against both theoretical frameworks and the broader comparative environment.

The goal of a case study is to isolate key issues, evaluate potential strategies for resolving these issues, and recommend the best course of action with a solid rationale.

Considering this, case studies often involve:

• Isolating Key Issues : Identifying the most critical challenges or problems in the case.
• Evaluating Strategies : Weighing the pros and cons of various remedial options or strategies.
• Making Recommendations : Presenting a well-reasoned solution that addresses the key issues effectively.

10 steps to develop a case study

Creating a comprehensive case study involves a systematic process of investigation, analysis, and presentation.

Below are the key steps to follow when developing a case study:

1. Define the objective

The first step in developing a case study is to clearly define its objective.

What are you trying to achieve with this case study?

Are you aiming to solve a specific problem, understand the impact of certain decisions, or explore the dynamics within an organization?

Defining the objective will guide the direction of your analysis and help you focus on the most relevant issues.

2. Identify key players and stakeholders

Next, identify the important players within the organization or scenario you are studying. These could include:

• Internal Stakeholders : Such as management, employees, and decision-makers who have a direct impact on the situation.
• External Stakeholders : Such as clients, suppliers, and partners who are affected by the organization’s decisions.

Understanding who the stakeholders are and what their interests are is crucial for analyzing the situation accurately.

Additionally, scale the importance of these stakeholders based on their influence in decision-making and the consequences they may face.

3. Explore the organizational context

Studies have shown that organizations with clearly defined and well-communicated missions are more likely to experience alignment among stakeholders.

So guess what?

To fully grasp the situation in your case study, it’s crucial to dive into the organizational context.

This involves examining the official mission of the organization — what it publicly aims to achieve — as well as its historical mission, which can shed light on how its goals and strategies have evolved over time.

It’s also important to understand how different stakeholders perceive the organization’s mission.

These varied perspectives often influence decisions and outcomes, revealing potential areas of conflict or alignment within the organization.

What’s more, considering the competitive landscape will help you see where the organization stands in its industry and what external pressures it faces.

4. Map out the decision-making process

Understanding how decisions are made within the organization is key to analyzing the case.

Start by mapping out the formal decision-making processes, such as structured meetings, documented procedures, and official protocols.

However, don’t overlook the informal processes that often play a significant role, such as personal relationships, unwritten rules, and back-channel communications.

These informal elements can heavily influence outcomes, often in ways that aren’t immediately apparent.

Recognizing both formal and informal processes will give you a clearer picture of how decisions are truly made and the factors that impact them.

5. Analyze production and service delivery

The next step is to delve into the nuts and bolts of how the organization operates by examining its production or service delivery processes.

In general, this includes looking at the resources, technologies, and methods the organization uses to create its products or deliver its services.

Ideally, you should identify any challenges or inefficiencies that might be hindering performance, as well as the support mechanisms in place — like training programs, technology, or workflow systems — that help maintain or improve operations.

6. Pinpoint and investigate problems

Did you know that conducting a thorough root cause analysis is crucial for long-term problem resolution?

That’s why you should clearly articulate the primary problem or set of problems that the case presents.

Go beyond surface issues to explore underlying causes and subsequent challenges that arise from the main problem.

For example, a decline in customer satisfaction might lead to secondary issues like increased return rates or damaged brand reputation.

Investigating these interconnected problems helps to build a comprehensive understanding of the situation, allowing you to trace the ripple effects of the core issue and anticipate future complications.

7. Assess strategic issues and risks

Identify the strategic issues at the heart of the case, which require thoughtful decision-making.

These might include questions of resource allocation, market strategy, or operational changes.

Once these issues are identified, assess the associated risks—be they financial, reputational, or operational.

Evaluating both the strategic implications and the potential risks is crucial for understanding the stakes involved in any decision and for proposing solutions that are both effective and feasible.

8. Weigh remedial options

After identifying the strategic issues, it’s time to consider the different remedial options available.

For each option, assess the advantages and disadvantages, taking into account how each aligns with theoretical frameworks, the potential risks, and the practicalities of implementation.

Comparing these options helps you determine which course of action is most likely to succeed given the specific context and constraints of the case.

This comparative analysis forms the basis for your final recommendation.

9. Make a well-supported recommendation

Finally, based on your comprehensive analysis, make a clear and actionable recommendation.

Your recommendation should directly address the identified issues and be backed by a strong rationale.

It’s important to justify why this solution is the best, referencing the analysis you’ve conducted, the pros and cons of other options, and the potential risks.

This well-supported recommendation not only solves the problem at hand but also stands up to scrutiny from others who may review your case study.

10. Craft an executive summary

Now, the only thing you’ve left to do is to wrap up your case study with an executive summary that highlights the key elements of your analysis.

The executive summary should be concise, providing a quick overview of the major issues, the solutions considered, and the recommended course of action.

This section is designed to give readers a snapshot of your findings and conclusions, enabling them to grasp the essence of your case study without delving into the full report.

Writing an effective case study requires a systematic approach to identifying key issues, analyzing potential solutions, and making well-supported recommendations.

By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can develop a comprehensive and insightful case study that not only addresses the problems at hand but also provides valuable lessons for future situations.

Whether you’re a student, a professional, or a researcher, mastering the art of case study writing will enhance your ability to think critically, solve problems, and communicate your findings effectively.

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Case Study Executive Summary Template

• Great for beginners
• Ready-to-use, fully customizable Doc
• Get started in seconds

When it comes to presenting your case study to busy executives, you need to make a lasting impression in a short amount of time. ClickUp's Case Study Executive Summary Template is here to help you do just that!

With this template, you can create a concise and impactful executive summary that highlights the most important points of your case study, including:

• A clear description of the problem or situation you addressed
• The approach you took to analyze and solve the problem
• The key findings and insights derived from your study
• Actionable recommendations and outcomes for decision-makers

Say goodbye to lengthy reports and hello to a streamlined and effective executive summary that will capture the attention of even the busiest executives. Try ClickUp's Case Study Executive Summary Template today and start impressing your stakeholders with your concise and compelling case study summaries.

Benefits of Case Study Executive Summary Template

When it comes to presenting a case study to busy executives, an executive summary template can be a game-changer. Here's how it can benefit your organization:

• Saves time by providing a concise overview of the case study's main points and findings
• Allows executives to quickly grasp the problem, approach, analysis, and recommendations of the study
• Facilitates informed decision-making by presenting key information in a clear and organized manner
• Enhances communication and collaboration among team members by providing a structured format for sharing case study insights

Main Elements of Case Study Executive Summary Template

ClickUp's Case Study Executive Summary template is the perfect tool to showcase the highlights and key findings of your case study in an organized and professional manner. Here are the main elements of this template:

• Custom Statuses: Stay on top of the progress of your executive summary by using custom statuses such as In Progress, Review, and Completed.
• Custom Fields: Capture important details about your case study, such as Client Name, Objective, Methodology, Results, and Conclusion, using custom fields. This allows for easy data entry and retrieval.
• Different Views: Choose from various views to work with your executive summary. Use the Doc view to write and format your summary, the Table view to organize data and findings, and the Calendar view to set deadlines and milestones.

With ClickUp's Case Study Executive Summary template, you can streamline the process of creating professional and impactful case study summaries.

How to Use Executive Summary for Case Study

To create a compelling and effective case study executive summary, follow these five steps:

1. Understand the purpose

Before you start writing your executive summary, it's important to understand its purpose. The executive summary is a concise overview of the case study that highlights the key points and findings. It should provide enough information to give the reader a clear understanding of the case study without having to read the entire report.

Use the Docs feature in ClickUp to familiarize yourself with the purpose and structure of an executive summary.

2. Identify the main sections

To create a well-organized executive summary, identify the main sections of your case study that need to be included. This typically includes a brief introduction, the problem or challenge, the solution implemented, the results achieved, and any key takeaways or lessons learned.

Use the Table view in ClickUp to outline the main sections and structure your executive summary.

3. Summarize the key points

In each section of your executive summary, summarize the key points from the corresponding section of the case study. Focus on the most important information and findings, and avoid including unnecessary details. Use clear and concise language to effectively communicate the main points.

Use the tasks feature in ClickUp to create individual sections for each key point and summarize them concisely.

4. Highlight the results and impact

One of the most important aspects of a case study is the results achieved and the impact it had. In your executive summary, highlight the key results and their significance. Use data and metrics to support your claims and provide evidence of the success of the case study.

Use custom fields in ClickUp to track and showcase the specific results and impact of the case study.

5. Review and refine

Once you have completed your case study executive summary, take the time to review and refine it. Look for any areas that can be improved or clarified, and ensure that the summary is cohesive and flows smoothly. Consider seeking feedback from others to get a fresh perspective.

Set a recurring task in ClickUp to review and refine your executive summary periodically to keep it up-to-date and relevant.

Get Started with ClickUp’s Case Study Executive Summary Template

Companies and consultants can use this Case Study Executive Summary Template to quickly summarize the key points of a case study for busy executives or decision-makers.

First, hit “Add Template” to sign up for ClickUp and add the template to your Workspace. Make sure you designate which Space or location in your Workspace you’d like this template applied.

Next, invite relevant members or guests to your Workspace to start collaborating.

Now you can take advantage of the full potential of this template to create effective executive summaries:

• Use the Summary View to provide a concise overview of the case study, including the problem, approach, analysis, and main recommendations or outcomes
• The Key Findings View will help you highlight the most important insights and conclusions from the study
• Use the Recommendations View to outline specific actions or strategies recommended based on the case study findings
• The Visuals View will allow you to include charts, graphs, or other visual representations to support your summary
• Customize the template by adding sections or fields that are relevant to your specific case study
• Update the summary regularly as new information or developments arise
• Share the executive summary with the intended audience in a clear and easily accessible format

Related Templates

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How To Write an Executive Summary (with examples)

An effective executive summary can mean the difference between a client win and the recycle bin. It's arguably the most valuable component of any business proposal , but many people get confused when it comes time to put pen to paper.

An executive summary is not actually about summarizing at all; it’s about selling. Here’s how to write a proposal executive summary that seals the deal, including the 5 key components you need and some helpful dos and don'ts.

(This article was originally published on 7/4/2017 and updated on 05/16/2023)

There is so much dissent surrounding the executive summary of a proposal— Where does the executive summary go? How long should an executive summary be? How do you format an executive summary? These uncertainties can add to the already stressful task of getting a winning proposal written, designed, and delivered to the prospective client on time. It’s time to set things straight.

What is an executive summary?

The executive summary is arguably the most valuable component of any proposal. It serves as an introduction, allowing readers to quickly get acquainted with your proposal by outlining what’s to come. It gives you an opportunity to sell your proposed solution and explain why the prospective client should choose you over the competition.

The purpose of an executive summary

First of all, the term “executive summary” needs a rebrand. The name itself speaks of stuffy suits, boring, jargon-filled reports, and boardrooms filled with cigar smoke and people ready to say no.

They can’t wait to read your executive summary.

In all seriousness, the word “summary” can be misleading, and this is the first mistake people often make when it comes to writing their executive summary. They think that the purpose of an executive summary is to explain the entire proposal in 250 words. But it’s not.

The real purpose of an executive summary is to engage your prospective client. It helps the prospect quickly decide whether they're going to read the rest of the proposal, pass it on to other decision-makers, or if it's destined for the recycle bin.

So you better make it good.

The executive summary of your proposal needs to grab the reader’s attention and pique their interest. Even though you and your team spent painstaking hours writing this proposal, selecting just the right graphics, and coming up with the best solution for your potential client’s problem, they may only read this one page and then flip to your pricing table.

That’s why this section needs to be specific and persuasive, with a focus on results and benefits of your company/product/service, rather than describing features. You can save the features for the body of the proposal.

When should you write the executive summary?

Whether you write the executive summary before or after the rest of the proposal is as contentious as the debate about the best part of a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup: the chocolate or the peanut butter.

Some people feel that you should write the executive summary first because it can help you outline your concept and organize your thoughts for the entire proposal. That way, it acts as a guide for members of your team who are tasked with preparing sections of the proposal, ensuring that the big idea is consistent throughout, and that all necessary components are included.

Others feel strongly that you should write the executive summary after you’ve prepared the rest of the proposal because you’ve had a chance to work through the objectives and the solutions, and you’ll have a better idea of what to say and how to say it. Plus, things may have changed since you first started the proposal, so you might need to adjust your approach.

How to format an executive summary

The format of an executive summary is an important consideration that many people overlook. What do you include? How do you arrange the sections? To help you get started, here are the components of a good proposal executive summary:

The Opener: Capture their attention

You need an opener that's compelling. A way to get the potential client’s attention right away, and you do that by talking about THEM, not about you. Focus on the issue and the result, but be direct, concise, and evocative.

This is the time to hook them in — get them excited about what they’re going to read next.

The Need: We get it

Before a client hires you, they want to know that you get them. You can’t solve a problem that you don’t understand. This section of the executive summary is where you demonstrate your grasp of the situation. You could include a bit of your own research or a brief reference to your company’s experience dealing with a similar situation. You should also talk about how the client will benefit from solving the problem — what will change, the positive outcomes, the results.

Again, the focus here is on the prospect and their challenge, not on you and your company.

The Proposed Solution: We’ve got it

Now you’re in the spotlight. This section is where you talk about the brilliant solution you’re proposing and why it will work. But remember, this is just an overview. The prospect can read all the delicious details in the proposal, so keep it high level but still provide enough detail to convince them you have something specific and well thought out for them.

This section should start to provide your prospect with a sense of relief and get them excited about the result.

The Evidence: We can do it

It's time to show your stuff. Talk about why your company, your team, or your product is not only willing to take this challenge on, but how and why you're qualified to do so. Demonstrate what sets you apart and why they should choose you over the competition.

Maybe this is your niche market and you have lots of experience helping other companies with a similar issue. Maybe it’s a particular skill set your team possesses, your research, your algorithm, or your project management process. Or maybe you’ve won 27 Academy Awards for best picture, and you know you can make this a hit.

Talk about WHY you can make this a successful project and deliver results, but (broken record) keep it brief.

The Call to Action: Let’s do it

Keeping in mind that the purpose of the executive summary is to sell, it’s now time to close the deal.

Make the client feel like they have no other chance for happiness than to hire you and proves your solution is the one that will make their dreams come true.

Talk about why you want to work with them — a little flattery goes a long way — and about how, as partners, you will be successful.

Executive Summary Examples

Without further adieu, here are four (fictional) business proposal executive summary examples that will get your prospects excited to work with you.

1. Example of Ecommerce Executive Summary

Prospect: Gyuto -- Japanese chef knife brand Sender: ThinkBig -- Shopify design agency Project title: Shopify ecommerce Proposal

Gyuto sells what is arguably the coolest line of artisanal, sustainably-sourced kitchen knives in the world. They're handmade in Japan, capable of slicing tomatoes as thin as paper, and surprisingly affordable, considering the attention to detail. But as impressive as Gyuto knives are, you've got a static website that merely showcases low-res photos of your product line and requires customers to pick up the phone and place orders manually.

As you're well aware, placing orders manually is not sustainable. It’s severely limiting your potential for sales, and it's negatively affecting the way your customers perceive and experience the Gyuto brand. You need an ecommerce store so that customers can easily buy products from you directly at any time, from anywhere, however they want. This is the only way to grow your business online.

Lucky for you (and 1,000,000 other retailers around the world) there's Shopify. Shopify is an awesome hosted ecommerce app that empowers retailers with an easy-to-use, easy-to-manage, customizable online store and secure checkout. Shopify gives you control over the look and feel of your store and allows you to add products, manage inventory, track sales, and more. It's hassle-free ecommerce that allows you to focus on other aspects of your business.

We'll focus on implementing Shopify and leveraging its features to help drive Gyuto revenue and improve your customer experience. We'll also include powerful search and categorization so customers can easily and quickly find what they're looking for. We use best practices so that product pages convert users to add more items to their shopping cart. And then, most importantly, we’ll guide people down the conversion funnel to complete the checkout process. With this solution, we aim to grow your monthly sales by 50% within the next six months.

Here at ThinkBig, we're proud to be Shopify experts. That means we're among an elite group of developers who have been trained and approved by Shopify to help businesses like yours grow their online presence. Our Shopify status only enhances our already extensive knowledge of ecommerce trends, functionality, customer behaviour, and design. We've helped many businesses transform underperforming sites to an all-out sales boom just by improving their online shopping experience.

We love working with companies like Gyuto. Those who embrace the changes required for growth while still honouring their brand values and customer loyalty. With this attitude, a partnership with ThinkBig can transform Gyuto from mom and pop shop to family-run global online enterprise in a way that is manageable, sustainable, and profitable. We've done it for superstar brands like Dollar Shave Club, and for soon-to-be star brands like Rum Runners Rum Cake Factory.

If you're ready to increase your monthly sales by 50% in 6 months, we're ready to take you there. This proposal outlines in more detail how we'll do it, and what you can expect along the way. But your biggest expectation should be one of success.

As you can see, ThinkBig addresses all five aspects of a winning executive summary. They focus on the client with the opener, identify the prospect's need in the second paragraph, offer a solution with evidence to back it up, and include a clear call-to-action. While this sample executive summary is on the longer side, it tells the prospect exactly why ThinkBig is right for the job before they even get to the meat of the proposal.

2. Example of Marketing Executive Summary

Prospect: Pete’s Pizzeria -- Toronto pizza restaurant Sender: uGrow -- Social media marketing agency Project title: Social Media Marketing Proposal

Pete’s Pizzeria has been our favorite restaurant since the very first day we moved our offices to Toronto. The crispy-yet-fluffy crust is to die for, the sauce is otherworldly, and don’t even get us started on that fresh buffalo mozzarella you use. Surely this isn’t the first time you’re hearing this, but we have a feeling that you don’t hear it often enough. We noticed that you don’t have much of a social media presence, which is unfortunate because we think that everyone in the city should be lining up to eat at Pete’s Pizzeria.

If you weren’t already aware, social media is one of the most effective ways to expand your reach and grow your business. Without it, you’re leaving a giant, untapped pool of potential customers on the table and you risk losing existing, hungry customers to other restaurants that they follow. What you need is a social media marketing strategy to showcase your delicious restaurant in order to increase sales and customer loyalty.

Fortunately, uGrow can help. We’ll leverage Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok to get your name out to millions of users. Here’s how: First, we’ll get you set up on each of the platforms and work with you to establish the Pete’s Pizzeria brand and voice. Then, we’ll take some stunning pictures of your food and write captions with trending hashtags. After that, we’ll create a consistent content calendar and posting schedule to maximize engagement. And to top it all off, we’ll manage all of the accounts to grow follower counts and increase traffic to your website. With this approach, we expect to increase your sales by 25% before year end.

At uGrow, we specialize in helping small, Toronto restaurants like Pete’s Pizzeria reach their full potential and grow their business. We’ve worked with over 75 restaurants across the city and throughout the GTA, and every one of our clients saw an increase in sales within three months of us taking over their social media. We’ve had several posts go viral, which resulted in our clients’ restaurants being completely sold out for the following weeks. All this to say: we love Pete’s Pizzeria and want to help you get the attention you deserve.

If you’re interested in increasing your sales by at least 25% by the end of the year, we can make it happen. This proposal goes into more detail on how exactly we plan to execute on your social media marketing strategy, and what you can expect once we start. Let’s get Pete’s Pizzeria trending.

In this sample executive summary, uGrow does a great job at playing to Pete’s Pizzeria’s pain points (whew!), and offers specific solutions and outcomes to build credibility with the prospect. uGrow also makes a great use of social proof to demonstrate its effectiveness with evidence from past clients.

3. Example of Cleaning Services Executive Summary

Prospect: ELC Holdings -- Property management company Sender: CLEAND -- Commercial cleaning services company Project title: Cleaning Services Proposal

With over 15,000 rentals in 3 states, ELC Holdings is one of the biggest property management companies in the midwest. Your growing portfolio of residential and commercial properties is seriously impressive, but we heard you could use some help keeping your commercial spaces in good shape. As people begin to return to the office, it’s essential that your properties are clean, safe, and compliant to public health guidelines.

As you know, maintaining commercial spaces is no walk in the park. It takes a lot of time and effort to clean even one floor, let alone 4. And that’s just one of your many buildings. But now more than ever, it’s important that your spaces are well-maintained so that your tenants feel safe and secure. It’s not an easy task, especially if you lack the staff and equipment. This is why you need commercial cleaning services.

Having spent over 25 years in the cleaning services industry, we’ve built an experienced team and an arsenal of cleaning equipment that will leave your building absolutely spotless. We offer daily, weekly, and biweekly cleaning arrangements to ensure that your buildings are always in perfect shape for your tenants. From the carpets to the ceilings and everything in between, we can help you clean and sanitize every last corner of your properties so you can rest assured that your tenants are happy.

CLEAND specializes in commercial cleaning services, and has worked with over 200 businesses across the Midwest. We currently have contracts with the United Center and the Auditorium Building in Chicago, and haven’t had a single complaint in the 10 years they’ve been using our services. We provide consistent, reliable results, and stand by our commitment to quality. In fact, if you aren’t happy with our services, we’ll pay the first month’s bill if you switch to another cleaning services company.

ELC Holdings is one of the biggest property management companies in the Midwest, and CLEAND is one of the best cleaning services companies in the area. What do you say we join forces? This proposal outlines how our services could benefit your company, and details what to expect if you choose to seize this opportunity.

This sample cleaning services executive summary immediately highlights the prospect’s pain points and explains why CLEAND is uniquely positioned to help relieve them. It incorporates all five components of a well-written executive summary and even highlights different service offerings before the prospect digs into the solutions section of CLEAND’s cleaning services proposal .

4. Executive Summary Template Example

Here's an example of an executive summary made using a customizable proposal template from Proposify's gallery.

Of course every executive summary needs to be tailored to your specific project, your potential client's needs, and your brand voice. But if you're looking for more inspiration, we have many other business proposal templates that you can customize yourself.

Executive summary tips: The Do’s and Don’ts

Some other important points and guidelines to keep in mind when writing your executive summary:

Do: use a template for your executive summary Getting started is the hardest part of writing a proposal executive summary. If you’re struggling to get the ball rolling, consider using a business proposal template that includes a sample executive summary. This can help ensure that you cover everything an executive summary should include.

Don’t: make it too long

Some people recommend that the executive summary should be 10% of your entire proposal, but it’s best if you try to keep it to one page, two tops if it’s a larger proposal. Be mindful that if you’re working on an RFP, they may already set out a particular length limit, so you’ll want to stick to that.

Don’t: use jargon

This rule applies to everything but is especially important when writing proposals. Jargon can act as a smokescreen to mask the fact that someone doesn’t really know what they’re talking about, or it can confuse people if they’re not familiar with the same terms.

Don’t: use overly technical language

Unless you are absolutely sure that the only person who will read the executive summary is an engineer or a developer or someone who will understand exactly what you’re talking about, don’t get too technical. In some situations, you may need to reference certain details, but remember that this is a persuasive document—sell the benefits, not the features. Save the tech stuff for the proposal.

Don’t: talk about your company history

The history of your company does not belong in the executive summary. After all, the executive summary is about your prospective client, not about you. However, if it is appropriate and relevant, put it in the body of the proposal under “About Us” or something.

Do: focus on your prospective client

Think about what they want to know, not what you want to tell them. Like any piece of copy, you need to write for your audience, so make sure you think about them; what turns them off and what turns them on.

Do: mention your potential client’s company name

People like to hear their names and the same holds true for businesses. Make sure you reference your prospect’s full company name several times in the executive summary, so they feel like you’re focused on them.

Do: use plain language

The regular rules for writing apply to executive summaries. Use simple, short sentences that are clear and can be understood at almost any reading level, especially if you might be writing for people whose first language is not English. Don’t be pretentious - you’ll come off like an ass. Be concise, and be persuasive. Here are some more writing tips for writing an effective business proposal .

Do: proofread and edit

This probably goes without saying, but you really, really don’t want any typos in your executive summary. Get more than one set of eyes on your document before it goes out, and preferably someone who wasn’t involved in its creation.

We hope this executive summary guide will help turn your ho-hum executive summaries into wicked pitches of excellence. Remember to be persuasive, not pedantic. And if anyone has a suggestion on a new name for executive summary, bring it on.

Director of Communications @proposify. Channeling Maria Von Trapp, Queen Elizabeth II, and my taxi-driving, yard-sale-obsessed grandmother. Professional word nerd and unapologetic disciple of the Oxford comma. Connect on LinkedIn

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Case Study Templates

How to write the executive summary for case studies.

The Executive Summary of your Case Study must make the right impression on your readers. It’s the first section they read. However, the Executive Summary must be the last part of the document you write.

How to Write a Case Study

When writing this section, remember this is your best chance to interest the reader—and get them to take action! For example: call your Sales team and get more information about your products, sign up for a newsletter, download a trial product, or request more information about your product line.

What’s the Purpose of an Executive Summary?

Executive Summaries should give readers a high-level overview of your Case Study.

This is NOT the introduction to your document; rather this sets the scene and describes your company, vision and product offering. In your mind’s eye, see the Executive Summary and the Case Study are two separate documents. Approach each one with a different ‘writer’s hat’.

The tone, style, and language may be different. In general, the Executive Summary will be tightly-written, direct, and high-level. You dive into these points in the case study itself. This applies to in-depth case studies over five pages. Shorter case studies may not require the same background information.

Best Practice: Writing your Executive Summary

Write your Executive Summary as though it were standalone document . It’s usually best to do this when the proposal is finished as you will then have digested the material and have a fuller grasp of the business objectives.

The Executive Summary as a ‘document’ introduces your business, principles, products, and people.

When writing your Case Study’s executive summary provide brief summaries of the following:

• Business operations
• Company’s background
• Competitors
• Customer list
• Financial projections
• Flagship products
• Industry awards
• Key services
• Management team
• Market share
• Marketing and sales objectives
• Office locations
• Partnerships
• Strategic alliances
• Vision Statement

Case study for Architecture projects

Guidelines: Writing the Executive Summary

The Executive Summary should be no more than one or two pages.

I’ve seen very concise and persuasive introductions that were less than three-hundred words. The business writers knew how to introduce the key points, ignore/relegate less important material, and use a writing style that made the reader want to read the rest of the document.

This applies to in-depth case studies over five pages. Shorter case studies may not require the same background information.

Don’t resort to clichés and hackneyed phrases. Your customers read business documents all day. Make sure yours stands out.

Note : This applies to in-depth case studies. Shorter case studies may not require the same background information.

• Company – Describe your company background, with details of your industry position, physical location and number of employees.
• Management – Introduce the key members of the senior management team. Where possible, give their name, position, age, prior employer, experience in similar activities, degrees etc. Use common sense here and move these to a later section in the document if it takes too much space. When writing a Case Study, I often add a section called Pen Portraits and add profiles of the management team in there.
• Product Offering – If you’re discussing a specific product offering, for example, software for selling digital goods online, then outline the three main benefits. Where appropriate, discuss key features, customers, competitors and industry awards.
• Value Proposition – Describe what is unique about this product, for example, if it can it be patented, localized, scaled, used over the web, on mobile devices.
• Financials – This is required if you’re seeking funding, looking for partners, or applying for a grant. Keep it short. Check the figures more than once!
• Funding – Describe your current position, use of funds to date, prior funding. Also break out the investment you’ve received to date, investors’ names, business valuation, and details of the exit strategy. (This section may not apply to all Case Studies.)
• Contact Information – Add your name, position, company, address, phone, fax, email and website address.

What else should go into the Executive Summary?

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Executive Summary Examples for Business Plans, Project Plans, and Research Projects

By Kate Eby | February 8, 2024

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Executive summaries allow decision-makers to quickly grasp the key points of important documents and make decisions. We’ve collected a variety of executive summary examples and templates that you can use as models for your executive summaries. 

Included in this article, you’ll find a  business plan executive summary example , a  project proposal executive summary example , a  research report executive summary example , and more. Plus, learn  how to fix common executive summary mistakes .

What Are the Main Components of an Executive Summary?

An  executive summary is a concise overview of a larger document, report, or proposal. It gives high-level executives or decision-makers a quick understanding of the main points of a longer document without requiring them to read the whole text.   

These are the components you might include in an executive summary:   

• Problem Statement: Clearly state the problem or challenge the company, product, or project addresses.
• Key Proposition: Outline the proposed solution or key value proposition.
• Market Analysis: Summarize findings about the market, customer needs, or competition.
• Key Features and Benefits: Highlight the main features or benefits of the proposed solution or strategy.
• Financial Summary: Provide a snapshot of financial aspects, such as cost, revenue projections, or return on investment (ROI).
• Next Steps: Briefly describe the next steps or strategy for implementation.

Simple Executive Summary Example

The following simple executive summary presents a concise statement of key findings and links them directly to a strategic recommendation. It provides a clear snapshot of the situation and the proposed action, which is essential for an executive summary.

Problem Statement

Many small businesses struggle with inefficient inventory management, leading to lost sales and increased operational costs.

Key Proposition

Our company proposes an AI-driven inventory management system that automates tracking and forecasting, tailored for small businesses.

Market Analysis

Research shows a 40 percent increase in demand for automated inventory solutions in the small business sector, with a significant gap in affordable, user-friendly options.

Key Features and Benefits

The system offers real-time inventory tracking, predictive restocking alerts, and an intuitive interface, reducing inventory errors by an estimated 50 percent.

Financial Summary

Our projected development cost is five hundred thousand dollars with a break-even point in 18 months. The expected ROI is 200 percent in three years, tapping into a market with a potential revenue of five million dollars annually.

Development will commence in Q1 2024, with a pilot launch in Q3. Full market release is scheduled for Q1 2025, followed by targeted marketing campaigns and customer feedback integration for further enhancements.

Executive Summary Template

Download a Blank Executive Summary Template for

Microsoft Word | Google Docs

Download an Example Executive Summary Template for

Available in blank and example versions, this executive summary template guides you in succinctly presenting key information about your business plan or project to stakeholders. Simply fill in each section with relevant details to create a concise overview that highlights problems, solutions, market potential, product features, financials, and next steps.

Business Plan Executive Summary Example

Review the following example for a business plan executive summary of an eco-friendly transportation company. This example provides a clear, brief overview that is essential when you want to engage stakeholders and set the stage for more detailed discussions.

In urban areas, the lack of convenient, eco-friendly transportation options leads to increased traffic congestion and pollution.

GreenGo Mobility Solutions proposes a network of e-bike sharing stations, offering an affordable, sustainable, and flexible transportation alternative.

There is a growing trend toward eco-friendly transport in cities, with a 60 percent increase in e-bike usage. Surveys show high interest among urban commuters for more accessible e-bike options.

Key Features and Benefits 

Our e-bikes are equipped with GPS tracking and easy-to-use interfaces. The bikes are designed for urban environments, offering a convenient and environmentally friendly commuting option.

The project requires an initial investment of two million dollars, with projected annual revenue of five million dollars by the third year. We anticipate a break-even point within two years, based on subscription and pay-per-use models.

Marketing Plan Executive Summary Example

In the following example, an executive summary outlines a marketing initiative within a company, detailing both the challenge and the strategic response. It provides a clear overview of the marketing plan’s objectives, actions, and expected outcomes.

We have seen a decline in new user adoption of our company's flagship software product over the past year.

Initiate a Revitalize and Engage campaign, focusing on updating the product’s user interface and enhancing customer engagement through social media and community building.

Competitor analysis and customer feedback indicate a need for more intuitive design and stronger community presence to attract and retain users.

The campaign will introduce a sleek, user-friendly interface and a robust online community platform, aiming to increase user engagement and satisfaction.

The campaign requires a budget of five hundred thousand dollars, with an expected increase in user adoption rates by 20 percent within the first year post-implementation.

Begin a UI redesign in Q2 2024, launch a social media engagement strategy in Q3, and roll out the updated product with community features in Q4.

Project Proposal Executive Summary Example

The example executive summary below demonstrates a well-structured project proposal that succinctly identifies a specific challenge and proposes an actionable solution. It provides a comprehensive snapshot of the project, including its rationale, expected benefits, financial implications, and implementation timeline.

Our current customer relationship management (CRM) system is outdated, leading to inefficiencies in sales tracking and client management.

We propose the development and implementation of a new, custom-built CRM system to streamline sales processes and enhance customer engagement.

Internal analysis indicates a 35 percent increase in process efficiency with a modern CRM system, while competitor benchmarking shows significant advantages in customer retention.

The new CRM will offer real-time sales tracking, automated client communication tools, and advanced analytics features, improving sales efficiency and customer satisfaction.

The estimated project cost is two million dollars, with a projected increase in sales efficiency by 50 percent and customer retention by 20 percent within two years.

Initiate the project in Q2 2024, with phase-wise implementation and employee training, aiming for full deployment by the end of Q4 2024.

Startup Executive Summary Example

Startups need to communicate their vision to potential investors and key stakeholders. In this example, an executive summary helps convey the startup’s vision with a concise summary of the business opportunity, unique selling proposition, market potential, and action plan.

There is a growing demand for sustainable and eco-friendly home cleaning products, but the market lacks options that are both effective and affordable.

EcoClean Innovations is a startup offering a line of environmentally friendly, biodegradable cleaning products made from natural ingredients, catering to eco-conscious consumers.

Market trends show a 50 percent increase in consumer preference for green homecare products, with a significant gap in cost-effective options.

Our products are non-toxic and competitively priced, and they have a minimal environmental footprint, addressing the need for effective and sustainable cleaning solutions.

We require an initial investment of one million dollars, projecting a 30 percent market penetration in the eco-friendly segment within the first two years.

Launch with an initial range of products by Q3 2024, followed by marketing campaigns targeting eco-conscious communities and online marketplaces.

Real Estate Development Executive Summary Example

In the following executive summary example for a construction project, the author outlines their vision for the Greenway Residential Complex. This summary captures the essence of the construction project proposal, presenting key information in a concise and structured format.

The growing urban population in Metro City has led to a shortage of affordable, eco-friendly housing options, resulting in increased living costs and environmental concerns. Key Proposition

Our project proposes the development of the Greenway Residential Complex, a sustainable and affordable housing solution. Utilizing innovative construction methods and eco-friendly materials, the complex aims to provide a balanced urban living experience that is both cost-effective and environmentally responsible.

Research indicates a high demand for eco-conscious housing in Metro City, with a market gap in affordable segments. Surveys show that young families and professionals are actively seeking sustainable living options that align with their environmental values and budget constraints.

• Sustainable design incorporating solar panels, rainwater harvesting, and green spaces
• Affordable pricing, targeting middle-income families and young professionals
• Proximity to public transportation and city centers, reducing commute times and the carbon footprint
• High-quality, energy-efficient building materials, ensuring lower utility costs and a smaller environmental impact
• Estimated project cost: Fifty million dollars
• Anticipated revenue from sales: Seventy million dollars, with a projected ROI of 40 percent over five years
• Funding secured from green building grants and private investors
• Finalize construction permits and approvals by Q2 2024.
• Begin construction in Q3 2024, with a projected completion date in Q4 2026.
• Launch a marketing campaign targeting eco-conscious families and professionals. Tip:  In this example, notice how helpful it is to use bullet points to convey certain information. Using bulleted lists is a great way to organize and present information in an executive summary.

Construction Project Executive Summary Example

Construction projects have many moving parts, which means executive summaries need to capture a lot of information in a small space. Consider a construction-specific executive summary template to ensure that stakeholders are keyed into the most vital project information.

Download a Blank Construction Project Executive Summary Template for

Microsoft Word |  Adobe PDF | Google Docs

Download an Example Construction Project Executive Summary Template for

Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF | Google Docs

This construction project executive summary template allows users to give a high-level overview of the key aspects of a project, such as status, risks, issues, and changes. Available in both blank and sample versions, this editable template condenses complex project information into an easily digestible format. To use it, simply fill in each section with relevant, concise information about the current state and progress of your construction project, ensuring it remains updated and reflective of any changes or developments.

Renewable Energy Initiative Executive Summary Example

A renewable energy initiative executive summary should highlight the project’s objectives, strategies, and potential impact, as well as its contribution to environmental sustainability. In the following example, the summary articulates the project’s vision and its alignment with global environmental goals.

The urgent need to address environmental challenges and the increasing global demand for energy underscore the importance of transitioning to renewable energy sources. The reliance on traditional fossil fuels is unsustainable and contributes significantly to climate change.

The SunWind Project is a pioneering initiative combining solar and wind power to create a robust and sustainable energy solution. This project aims to leverage the strengths of both solar and wind energy, ensuring a continuous and reliable power supply while significantly reducing carbon emissions.

The renewable energy sector is experiencing rapid growth, fueled by global environmental policies and a rising consumer preference for sustainable energy. This shift presents an opportunity for the SunWind Project.

The project is unique in its integration of solar panels and wind turbines, ensuring consistent energy production under varying weather conditions. This scalable approach is designed to adapt to increasing energy demands. By significantly reducing the carbon footprint, the project supports global environmental sustainability goals and has the potential to power thousands of homes and businesses.

The SunWind Project has an estimated cost of two hundred million dollars, with projected revenues from energy sales anticipated to be around three hundred million dollars over the next 10 years. This represents a potential ROI of 50 percent. The project is poised to benefit from green energy grants, government subsidies, and private investments.

Immediate steps include securing the necessary environmental permits and clearances. The construction phase, slated to begin in the second quarter of 2024, will focus on installing solar panels and wind turbines, with a goal to commence energy production by the end of 2025.

One-Paragraph Healthcare Executive Summary Example

An executive summary of a healthcare initiative needs to do the following: concisely identify a pressing healthcare issue, present a tailored solution with its benefits, summarize market needs and competition, and outline the financial viability and next steps. 

In the following example, notice how an executive summary can capture all key elements in a single paragraph:

The HealthFirst Community Wellness Initiative addresses the critical problem of rising chronic illness rates in urban areas, focusing on diabetes and heart disease. Our comprehensive solution involves launching community health centers that provide preventive care, lifestyle education, and regular health screenings, as well as cater to the specific needs of urban populations. Market analysis indicates a significant demand for accessible healthcare services in these areas, with a lack of preventive and educational resources being a key gap. The initiative’s main features include state-of-the-art diagnostic tools, personalized health plans, and collaboration with local fitness and nutrition experts, offering benefits such as improved community health outcomes and reduced healthcare costs. Financially, the project is expected to be sustainable, with a mix of funding from public health grants and private partnerships. We are projecting a positive ROI within three years due to reduced hospital admissions. The next steps involve securing funding, establishing partnerships with local health professionals and organizations, and launching a pilot center in the downtown district, with a plan to expand to five more urban areas within two years.

Nonprofit Executive Summary Example

An executive summary for a nonprofit organization should communicate the essence of a project or initiative to donors and volunteers. It should concisely outline the organization’s mission, goals, and key solutions while also detailing strategies, actions, and their impact.

  This  executive summary example from Doctors Without Borders emphasizes the inadequacy of current Universal Health Coverage (UHC) agendas in meeting the needs of vulnerable populations. It then proposes six key recommendations to address these shortcomings. 

This executive summary succinctly identifies the core issue — inequitable access to healthcare — and clearly outlines actionable recommendations. This document helps facilitate advocacy and policy change, which are central to this organization’s goals.

Research Report Executive Summary Example

An executive summary in a research report concisely presents the key findings, conclusions, and recommendations derived from a research project. It covers elements such as the project topic, background, research methods, and critical insights, tailored for quick understanding and decision-making.

In this real-world  exampl e from the ASPCA , the executive summary details a study showing that veterinary hospitals’ proactive discussions about pet health insurance positively impacted hospital revenue and increased patient visits. 

Notice how this summary concisely outlines the study’s purpose, methodology, and significant findings, providing a clear overview for readers. In addition, it highlights the study’s relevance and implications for veterinary practices, emphasizing the practical benefits of educating clients about pet health insurance.

Research Report Executive Summary Template

Download a Blank Research Report Executive Summary Template for

Microsoft Word |  Adobe PDF | Google Docs Download an Example Research Report Executive Summary Template for

To create your own research report executive summary, download this customizable template. Available in blank and example versions and three printable formats, this template serves as a structured guide to organize and present the key components of a research report. Simply fill in each section with specific details about your research, including the project topic, background information, methods used, conclusions, and recommendations.

Research Project Proposal Executive Summary Example

An executive summary for a research project focuses mainly on the research question, methods, and expected outcomes. These summaries often point out how important the research could be and what impact it might have on the field.  

Download a Blank Research Project Proposal Executive Summary Template for Microsoft Word | Google Docs  

Download an Example Research Project Proposal Executive Template for Microsoft Word | Google Docs

Teams can use this one-page executive summary — available in a blank or sample version — to concisely present the key elements of a research project to stakeholders, potential funders, or academic committees. By structuring the summary with specific sections such as background, objectives, and methodology, you can be sure that you’ve clearly and briefly outlined all critical aspects of your research.

Executive Summary Slide Example

Executive summaries are often documents that one distributes to executives, potential investors, and other stakeholders. However, slideshow presentations can facilitate a more interactive discussion. Plus, the inclusion of charts, graphs, and other images can better illustrate key points.  

Download an Example Single Slide Executive Summary Template for

PowerPoint | Google Slides

Download a Blank Single Slide Executive Summary Template for

This executive summary slide template is a versatile tool for succinctly conveying key project information in a single, visually engaging slide. You can enter your project information in the blank template or download the sample version for additional guidance. Input relevant details in each section, such as an overview of your project and next steps. The template allows users to insert their own text, graphics, and data. Copy your completed slide into a longer presentation, or use it on its own as a visual complement to any stakeholder presentation.

How to Improve Your Executive Summary

A poorly constructed executive summary can serve as an instructive example of what to avoid. Ineffective executive summaries might be too detailed or technical, lack focus on key points, or omit a clear call to action. 

Here are examples of the three most common mistakes found in executive summaries:

Includes Too Many Details or Technical Information

This example demonstrates one of the most common mistakes, which is including too much detail or overly technical language. It dives deeply into the specific technical specifications of the equipment and financial metrics, which might be overwhelming for readers. A more effective executive summary would focus on the broader objectives, expected impacts, and benefits of the project in a language that is accessible to a non-technical audience.

Lacks Focus on Key Points  

Sometimes, summaries fail to clearly highlight the most critical aspects of the project or proposal. This summary lacks focus concerning the key points of the Pathways to Knowledge project. A more effective summary would concisely state the project’s goal, significance, and anticipated outcomes.

Omits a Clear Call to Action or Conclusion  

Failing to include a clear conclusion or call to action is another common mistake. The summary should not only inform but also persuade and guide the reader toward the desired action or decision. This summary outlines the project’s goals and structure, but omits a clear call to action. The document doesn’t specify what is expected from the reader or potential stakeholders, such as support, partnership, funding, or involvement in the project.

Corrected Example

To create a more effective example, start by removing overly technical details. (Stakeholders don’t need to know the specific standards with which the training modules are aligned or which types of processors power your computers.) Next, take out unnecessary details that stray from the main point of the project. An executive summary is not the place to discuss the origins of the project idea or the elements your team has not yet decided on. Finally, always conclude your executive summary with a clear call to action.

The Pathways to Knowledge project is a pioneering educational initiative by a nonprofit organization, aimed at bridging the educational divide in underprivileged and remote communities. This project involves the deployment of Mobile Education Hubs: state-of-the-art, solar-powered mobile units that are equipped with educational resources, technology, and internet access. These hubs are designed to travel to various underserved areas, providing children and adults with access to quality educational materials, online learning platforms, and virtual tutoring. Each hub also hosts workshops and seminars led by educators and experts, covering a wide range of subjects from basic literacy and numeracy to vocational training and digital literacy. The initiative seeks to empower communities by enhancing educational opportunities, fostering a culture of lifelong learning, and equipping individuals with the skills necessary for the 21st-century job market. By focusing on accessibility and adaptability, the Pathways to Knowledge project aspires to create a ripple effect of educational advancement and social upliftment across diverse communities.

Master the Art of Writing Executive Summaries with Examples for Business Plans, Project Plans, and Research Projects from Smartsheet

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How to Write Executive Summary for a Case Study|Business Plan

What is an executive summary?

Executive Summary is the brief introduction to and summary of your business plan (or case study). It should describe your business, the problem it solves, your target market, and the financial highlights.

A good executive summary takes your reader’s attention and lets them know what you’re doing and why they should read the rest of your business plan or proposal. It’s not unusual for investors to make an initial decision simply on the basis of reading the Executive Summary, so it’s important to get it right. We ‘re going to show you how to write an executive summary that sets your business plan apart from the rest.

For example, if a company performs a competitor analysis before deciding whether or not to move in a different strategic direction, a business plan would be put together to articulate the findings and propose further steps. This business plan would be opened with an executive summary.

As such, the executive summary quickly becomes the most important part of any business plan.

Is an executive summary important?

Are you writing a business plan to show it to investors or bankers? Then you need to have a good executive summary. A lot of people will read only the summary, no matter what. Others will first read the summary to decide whether or not to read the rest of the plan. The Executive Summary is essential to the plans that are being written for outsiders.

Now, if you are writing a business plan for internal use only, you may not need to write an executive summary. However, there are some internal plans – such as an annual operational plan or a strategic plan – that can use the summary to highlight the necessary information and to present a digestible version of the overall plan.

How long should an executive summary be?

The general rule is to have as short as possible executive summaries. Your audience has limited time and attention and needs to see your business plan information as quickly as possible.

Try to keep your executive summary under 2 pages, if necessary, even if it can be longer.

Sometimes you may need a longer executive summary

For complex case studies, you may need a more in-depth executive summary to provide readers with an overview of the case study.It may be long, but it effectively introduces the client, outlines their challenge, and describes the solution and the outcome. Sets the stage for further reading.

Guide to write an effective executive summary for Business Plan

1. a product or service description and the problem solved by your company.

Include a brief description of the product or service you are offering and why it is necessary. Your business does not need to address a larger social problem, but it should address customer needs or market opportunities.

2. A description of your target market

Your target market is who you think your clients are going to be. Sometimes the name of the product itself defines the market, such as “Peoria ‘s Best Thai Food” or “Mini Cooper Dashboard Accessory.” If not, a brief description of the target market — your primary audience or the people you think will spend money on your solution — will suffice.

3. Competition

Assuming that your business has competition, briefly describe how your business will be differentiated. Are you competing for a price, quality, or something else? Briefly describe what makes you different from your business here.

4. Financial Overview

If you are an existing company, this may be as simple as highlighting recent annual sales and growth over the last year. For start-ups, it could be a brief description of aspirations, such as the sales forecast target for the next year or three years from now. I often recommend a simple highlights chart, a sales bar chart, and a gross margin for the next three years.

5. Write About Your Team

This is particularly important for startup companies. Investors want to know who’s behind the business idea, and why you and your team are the right people to build the business. It may also be worth highlighting any gaps in your team and how you intend to fill them. If you have potential partners or candidates in mind, briefly mention them and expand their qualifications to your full business plan.

6. Funding Needs

If you’re using your business plan to raise money for your business, your executive summary should show how much money you ‘re looking for. Investors will want to know this in advance, and they won’t have to dig through a business plan to find this detail.

How To Write the Executive Summary for Case Studies?

The term “case study” brings to mind a psychologist who explores the patient’s history and treatment and writes down the details, but in fact, a case study is just as likely to involve an industry or law research report. It identifies a problem or a need, investigates its causes, presents a variety of opinions, and suggests certain actions. This involves a lot of information, which is why you might want to present it along with an executive summary – an additional document, something like a mini-report, which consolidates the most important information.

Remember, when writing this section, this is your best chance to interest the reader — and get them to act! For example: call your sales team and get more information about your products, sign up for a newsletter, download a trial product, or ask for more information about your product line.

• Understanding an Executive Summary: Consider the Executive Summary as a time-saving measure. It’s not necessarily for you, but for the people who will be receiving and reviewing your study. It captures the most important information so that your readers can understand your data and conclusions within a fraction of the time it takes them to read the entire study. For example, if you’re a financial executive building up a business case for the planned IT acquisitions, you ‘d bring your management team together to make their input into the acquisition of funds for specific IT projects. The case explains their own motivations and needs and their desire to be involved in high-level strategic decisions. It must be extremely detailed to be accurate and credible. Top-level management and chief executives have a lot of issues on their plates, so they might postpone reading your full report because it’s sure to be a time-consuming project. If you’re preparing an executive summary to go along with your report, it’s more likely to be read.
• Preparing the Data: You ‘re going to want to include enough details about your research in your executive summary to make it powerful and compelling, but brevity is key. Your summary should answer most – if not all – of the important questions that senior management may have, but be comparatively brief. A good place to start with is a review of your study, taking note of what jumps out to you as the most important data.
• Organizing the Summary: Even if your case study is 300 pages long, you may want to keep your executive summary down to 10 pages or so. If your study is shorter, your summary should be shorter. You might start with an introduction, explaining why you prepared a case study, even if it was because higher-level management asked for it. Explain why the study was needed. Describe how you’ve done your research. Lay out your findings, and then finish with your recommendations. With most executive summaries, quoting the corresponding word-by-word report is a bad idea, but when summarizing a case or research study, it is considered permissible to “cut and paste” parts of your recommendation section.
• Writing the Document:  Not every great analytical mind has a gift of words as well. If writing isn’t your strong suit, you might want to consider brainstorming your management team for their ideas or hire a professional writer to draft a summary for you based on your notes. If you feel confident about your abilities, remember that your summary is your first and best chance of achieving your business objectives. Use a language that makes it clear that you believe strongly in your business case. Remember that although you know your area of expertise both inside and outside, your audience, often higher-level management, may have only a general overview of your specific field of expertise.

Download Free executive summary template for case study from HERE

See Also How to write business plan step by step How to calculate business startup costs

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How to write an executive summary: Templates and examples

Imagine you are a CEO or chief product officer (CPO) with a day full of meetings, business agreements, and high-level initiatives to manage.

At the same time, you have to review market research and usability testing reports your team has come up with. Not to mention signing off on any big feature initiatives that require significant investments and thus executive approval.

Does that leave you enough time to go through a 100-page report detailing the minutiae of your team’s operations and every bit of data that went into each and every decision? Of course not! This is where an executive summary comes in handy.

What is an executive summary?

An executive summary (ES) is a high-level document or paragraph written as part of a report or a handout that summarizes the critical information of a specific project or feature.

The executive summary, also called the speed read or management summary, is written specifically to provide key stakeholders, such as C-suite executives, senior managers, and investors, with a very abstract and holistic understanding of what is going on.

The executive summary can be a great way for product managers to secure buy-in quickly from upper management and other stakeholders.

Executive summary vs. project overview

Before we delve deeper into executive summaries for product managers, we should note some important differences between an executive summary and a project overview.

Executive summary examples and templates

In product management, you’ll come across various situations that require you to prepare and present an executive summary. Each scenario calls for a different format.

Below are some examples of reports that require executive summaries when presenting to senior stakeholders:

Product updates

Investor pitch, annual or quarterly product review.

After one or more development cycles have been executed and release is imminent, the product manager may need to write an executive summary to communicate any fundamental changes in the product, such as new features, UI/UX enhancements, and fixed bugs.

An executive summary for product updates should be written in straightforward language with minimal jargon. For a clean, succinct format, use the following template:

• Problem — (Describe the problem you solved) 
• Change — (Describe the solution you came up with)
• Problem — (Describe the problem you solved)

In some early-stage startups, product managers represent the voice of the market and customers. As such, they are often tasked with writing investor pitches.

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In this case, the product manager should prepare a handout with slides along with an executive summary page. The executive summary should include the following details on a single page:

• Target user problems
• Summary of your competitive edge
• What is your solution?
• Total addressable market (TAM)
• Return on investment (ROI)

Product managers in large corporations often need to write an annual or quarterly product review report that details the critical performance of the product, including key objectives, improved or declined product metrics, notable achievements, and obstacles faced during a given time span.

For a periodic product review, you should prepare an executive summary of only one paragraph, stating the improved and declined metrics and linking them with the reasons behind success and failure.

How to write an executive summary

There’s no broad, established template for writing an executive summary because the requirements differ based on your function, role, project, goal, and situation. However, any executive summary should include the following components:

In product management alone, you will be using at least three different executive summaries in multiple situations. However, all of them should include some components. Those components are:

• State the problem
• Propose a solution
• Summarize the impact

1. State the problem

The executive summary should always start by detailing a problem. This problem should be evidenced and supported by either qualitative or quantitative data.

In our recent product analytics report, we discovered that it takes the user at least seven hours to place an order after initiating a search session. This is damaging our monthly conversion rates.

2. Propose a solution

The executive summary should outline a clear solution. It should be focused on persuading the reader that you chose the right solution. As always, the best way to do that is to include hard data as evidence that your solution is viable.

Based on our latest design sprint and our user testing, we believe that building an integrated recommendation system into our search function will decrease the time to place an order from search by 20 percent. This is because we uncovered the highest drop-off rate happens when there are no results available.

3. Summarize the impact

The final section should include the achieved impact (if you are sharing it in a product update) or the expected impact (if it is a feature proposal like in the example above). In this section, you should also restate any significant takeaways from your executive summary.

Finally, based on our extensive research, we believe that building the recommendation with some search enhancements, such as search results filters and sorting, will not only help decrease the time to place an order from a search by 20 percent, but will also increase the basket size by 27 percent. For more information, go through our design sprint, user research synthesis, and product requirement documentation.

Executive summary checklist

Below is a checklist that you can use to evaluate your executive summary and make sure it’s compelling and practical before you present it to stakeholders. If you can answer “yes” to each question, your executive summary is in good shape:

• Does it have a clear opening statement packed with data? E.g., In recent user interviews we ran, 60 percent of our interviewed users explicitly mentioned the need for new payment methods
• Does it mention the problem that you want executives to consider?
• Does it describe the solution you and your product team are proposing?
• Is it contained to no more than two pages?
• Does it use clear and simple language?
• Was it reviewed by another product manager or product associate?

Final thoughts

An executive summary is an essential tool for product managers to communicate various aspects of product development effectively to senior executives at all stages of product development. A well-crafted executive summary can help you gain the buy-in you need from senior executives and product leaders.

By following the checklist above, you can ensure that they are providing you senior stakeholders with the best executive summary possible.

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12 Must-Have Executive Summary Templates | Visme

Written by: Raja Mandal

An executive summary is a staple for business documents like project plans, presentations, or business proposals.

These summaries are perfect for busy decision-makers who don't have time to dive into the entire document. Essentially, you're giving them a quick way to grasp all the important details and make the right decisions.

Since it's such an important piece, you'll want to make sure your executive summary is top-notch. And using a template can take the guesswork out of the equation and ensure you cover all the crucial details.

We've compiled 12 customizable executive summary templates to help get you started. Choose a template that fits your needs and use the tools and features we’ll discuss in this article.

Table of Contents

What is an executive summary, benefits of an executive summary, what should an executive summary include, 12 executive summary templates, executive summary faqs.

• An executive summary is a brief section of a document that summarizes the main points and gives readers a quick preview of the content.
• Writing an executive summary saves time, highlights key benefits, clarifies important points, and makes the document easier to navigate.
• The content of an executive summary depends on the document type and what's written in the document. For example, a business plan would include a company overview, market analysis, products and services, financial needs and projections, unique selling points and a strong conclusion.
• With Visme, you get access to thousands of templates, including business plans, presentations and reports with executive summaries.
• Sign up for a free account in Visme and craft your executive summary in minutes.

An executive summary is a short section or page that gives an overview of a much longer business report, plan or presentation. It summarizes the purpose, highlights the significant points and briefly explains any outcomes or conclusions from the main document.

Often, bullet points or lists are used to make the information easy to scan and understand. The summary might include important financial details or following steps to help the reader decide what to do with the information. What you put in an executive summary depends on the type of document you're summarizing and the most important details it covers.

Here’s a sample executive summary for a marketing plan.

Executive Summary vs. Project Plan

As we've already discussed, an executive summary is a snapshot of the entire plan or proposal. It summarizes the key goals, strategies and expected outcomes, helping readers quickly understand the big picture.

On the other hand, a project plan is a detailed roadmap. It outlines the step-by-step tasks, timelines, resources and responsibilities needed to bring the project to life. It's a comprehensive guide for the project team, providing the necessary details for execution.

You might wonder “Why should I write an executive summary for my document? Isn't the document itself enough?” Here are some reasons why you should include this important section.

• Efficient Time Management: By offering a quick overview, an executive summary saves busy readers from having to go through the entire document.
• Highlights Core Benefits: This summary highlights key achievements and the unique aspects of the project, speeding up the decision-making process for stakeholders.
• Clarity and Focus : Keeping the content focused on essential information helps maintain reader interest in critical points.
• Ease of Navigation: Serving as a roadmap, the executive summary guides readers directly to the most relevant sections, simplifying quick referencing.

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The content included in an executive summary depends on the nature of the document and what it contains. To give you an idea of the different elements an executive summary can have, here are some document types and what to include in them:

Business Plan

• Company Overview: Presents a brief history, mission, and vision of the company.
• Market Analysis: Details the current market situation and the company's position within it.
• Product and Services: Describes the company's value proposition to customers.
• Financial Analysis and Funding Request: Outlines financial needs and projections to show the company's growth potential.
• Unique Proposition: Highlights what makes the company different and worth investing in.

Project Plan

• Project Objectives: Clearly state what the project aims to achieve.
• Project Methodology: Describes how the project will be carried out, including methods and strategies.
• Timeline and Milestones: Provides a detailed schedule of project phases and key milestones.
• Risk Assessment : Identifies potential risks and outlines strategies to mitigate them.

Business Report

• Introduction: Sets the context and outlines the purpose of the report.
• Findings: Presents the results of any research or analysis undertaken.
• Analysis: Discusses the implications of the findings, providing insights and recommendations.
• Conclusion and Recommendations: Summarizes the main points and proposes the next steps or actions.

Marketing Plan

• Market Summary: Offers an overview of the market, including trends, size, and customer demographics.
• SWOT Analysis: Examines strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to the marketing strategy.
• Marketing Strategies: Details the approaches to be used to achieve marketing objectives.
• Financial Projections : Outlines expected budgets, sales, and profitability linked to marketing efforts.

Now, we’ll provide you with the 12 executive summary templates we promised to share earlier.

These templates are from various documents, industries and use cases.

Select one that suits your needs and customize it using Visme’s drag-and-drop editor.

Visme's advanced tools and customizable templates are not just about offering convenience; they deliver real-world results and save businesses money.

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1. Event Marketing Plan Executive Summary Template

Simple and impactful, this template's executive summary lets you quickly outline key aspects of your event marketing plan. It’s perfect for event planners who want to make a bold statement and leave a lasting impression on sponsors, stakeholders or clients.

This template features a sleek black background, giving it a professional and modern feel. Use the high-quality content as an inspiration to create your own.

To ensure your message is polished and persuasive, you can use advanced tools like Visme's AI writer . It will help you create engaging executive summaries within a fraction of the time. Write a text prompt that explains your requirements and watch the tool generate it in seconds. Plus, you can use this tool to create an outline, edit and proofread text and summarize your content.

2. Small Business Executive Summary Template

This template helps you easily summarize the customer service activities of your small business. Its organized layout is perfect for small business owners who want to show stakeholders a clear, well-presented overview of their business.

Creating any business document from scratch takes a lot of time and effort. That's why it's always better to start with a template.

But what happens when you need a quicker solution?

Visme's AI document generator is the answer. This tool can generate documents, including executive summaries, business plans, project plans and more.

All you have to do is give it a text prompt and choose a style or theme and the tool will generate the document complete with text, images and colors of your choice. Furthermore, you can customize the document directly in Visme to fit your precise needs.

3. Monthly Progress Report Executive Summary Template

Use this simple template to create a brief and clear summary of your team's progress for your monthly report. It highlights your team's accomplishments, KPIs and goals in a straightforward way.

The template is easy to follow, with sections for your key points that emphasize what's essential. You can customize it by changing the colors and adding your data.

4. E-commerce Business Plan Executive Summary Template

This template uses a simple, clean white and blue color scheme, making it easy on the eyes. It focuses on the financial issues and the process of handling physical goods related to customer returns, which is the problem this business is solving.

Customize the template to showcase your business's story and emphasize the products and services that address consumers' problems.

Deploy Visme’s Brand Wizard to keep your branding consistent across your projects.

Simply paste your website URL into the tool, and the brand wizard will extract your brand colors , brand fonts and company logo and save them in a brand kit. You can then easily apply these elements to any document with just one click.

5. Consulting Business Plan Executive Summary Template

Introduce your consulting business plan in a sleek and concise manner using this template.

It leaves room for consultants to strategically present their services, market analysis and unique selling points. With this summary, you can draw in potential customers or partners, offering them a clear, brief insight into what makes your consulting approach effective and unique.

If you are looking for a quick solution to creating your business plan, use Visme's AI business plan generator . Write a prompt explaining your business to create a first draft of your plan.

Then, choose a style from the options to generate a complete business plan with text and visuals. You can further customize every section of the plan to match your requirements.

6. Business Plan Workbook Executive Summary Template

This template is a helpful guide for writing a business plan executive summary. It includes simple, direct questions to help you craft your summary.

Just read the questions and fill in your answers. Once it's done, you'll have a clear executive summary to share with investors, your team, or potential partners. Plus, you can use this workbook for training and developing your teams or as a lead magnet to generate new business.

7. Project Evaluation Report Executive Summary Template

This simple white and blue template focuses on a project to build a new public hospital. It outlines why the hospital is being built based on current health policies and tracks the construction progress by comparing expenses and budget. It highlights the main points, suggests improvements and is perfect for quickly sharing project status and needs.

Use Visme's dynamic fields feature to save time and effort while customizing this template. This tool allows you to automatically update personal and company information across all your projects.

Create and save your dynamic fields, such as company name, address and contact information. Whenever you insert that field into your documents, it will populate the data you saved.

8. Team Evaluation Report Executive Summary Template

This team evaluation executive summary template streamlines the process of summarizing team performance. You can highlight team achievements, identify areas for growth and showcase performance data.

This template helps HR managers and team leaders communicate insights effectively, which leads to constructive conversations about improving teamwork. Collaboration is key to creating a report that truly reflects a team's dynamics and performance. Use Visme's collaborative design features to make this report a joint effort.

Invite team members via email or a shareable link and allow them to comment, annotate and edit the document. Use tools like pin, circle or draw annotations for precise feedback, streamlining the review process.

Read this comprehensive guide to learn more about how to do collaborative design right with Visme.

9. Daycare Business Plan Executive Summary Template

This vibrant template uses eye-catching yellow and violet colors, along with high-quality images, to outline your daycare's business plan. The template showcases "FunCare," a daycare solution with low staff-to-child ratios and affordable prices designed to cater to the needs of middle-income families.

Use this template as a guide to create a compelling and visually appealing summary for your daycare business.

10. Law Firm Marketing Plan Executive Summary Template

Use this professional template to create a clear executive summary for your law firm's marketing plan. The design uses a green and black color scheme and includes high-quality images for added visual appeal.

This format is ideal for presenting your firm's marketing objectives. It is perfect for law firms aiming to refresh their client base and showcase their legal expertise with a new marketing approach.

Are you looking for some unique graphics to support the content of your executive summary?

You can use Visme’s AI image generator to create icons, illustrations, drawings, abstracts or almost any other image you might need. Just give a text prompt explaining what you want to generate, choose your image style and the tool will do the rest.

11. Project Report Executive Summary Template

Ideal for managers and teams, this template creates a concise summary of project status or results. The executive summary highlights the important outcomes, future objectives and immediate next steps. This helps to provide quick insight into the project’s performance without overwhelming team members and stakeholders.

Make your executive summary more engaging by adding Visme’s interactive and animation features. Add clickable links, buttons, menus and hover effects that allow users to interact with your document and enjoy an immersive reading experience.

12. Fashion Business Plan Executive Summary Template

This template is perfect for introducing a fashion boutique for busy professional women. The design is sleek and sophisticated, using an orange background with white and blue fonts.

It clearly outlines the target customer and the unique services offered, like style assessments

With Visme's advanced analytics tools , you can gain insights into how your audience is and interacting with your executive summary or report. Use these insights to adjust your content to connect better with your target audience and make your message more impactful.

Q1. What is an executive summary in project management?

An executive summary in project management is a concise overview of a project's goals, scope, timeline and key deliverables designed for stakeholders and decision-makers.

Q2. What is an executive summary in a business plan?

In a business plan, an executive summary is a brief overview that highlights the main points of the plan, including the business concept, financial features and current business position and aims to capture the attention of potential investors or partners.

Q3. What does an executive summary slide look like?

An executive summary slide typically includes bullet points or short paragraphs summarizing the main points of a presentation. It is designed for quick reading and often features key statistics and condensed findings, conclusions or recommendations.

Q4. How long should an executive summary be?

An executive summary should be about 5-10% of the total length of the document it summarizes, usually one page for every ten pages of the main document. This ensures that your executive summary is brief yet comprehensive enough to cover key points.

Q5. How to write an executive summary?

Follow these simple steps to write an executive summary:

• Introduction: Start with a compelling introduction that summarizes the main theme of the document.
• Project Overview: Summarize the project, including the problem or opportunity at hand.
• Solution and Outcomes: Describe the proposed solution and the expected outcomes or benefits.
• Strategy and Operations: Outline the strategy for implementation and the operational plan.
• Strengths: Highlight the unique strengths and competitive advantages of your approach.
• Financials: Summarize the financial implications, projections and any funding needs.
• Call to Action: Conclude with a persuasive call to action, prompting the reader to take the next steps.

Read our complete guide on writing an executive summary for a detailed, step-by-step tutorial.

Easily Create Content for Executives & Investors with Visme

Now that you understand what an executive summary is and what to include in it, you can use one of our 12 customizable executive summary templates to make the process easier.

Each template is made for a specific use case, so you can easily find one that fits your needs.

In addition to executive summaries, Visme provides a full set of templates for creating various business documents, such as business plans , presentations , pitch decks and reports . So, you will find all your business document creation needs in one tool to save more time and effort as you grow your business.

And the best part? With user-friendly tools, a vast asset library and advanced features, anyone can customize these templates without any design experience.

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Raja Antony Mandal is a Content Writer at Visme. He can quickly adapt to different writing styles, possess strong research skills, and know SEO fundamentals. Raja wants to share valuable information with his audience by telling captivating stories in his articles. He wants to travel and party a lot on the weekends, but his guitar, drum set, and volleyball court don’t let him.

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How to Write an Executive Summary

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Being asked to write an executive summary, whether for a policy paper, pamphlet, briefing paper or report, may be a daunting prospect if you’ve never done it before.

However, ask a few questions, and keep a few simple rules in your mind and it becomes much more straightforward. This page sets out the questions to ask, whether of yourself or someone else, and a few warnings and conventions to bear in mind.

Executive Summary Content

Two key questions you need to ask before you start

• Who is the intended audience of my executive summary?
• Which of the contents of the paper that I am summarising do they really need to know?

These questions are important because they tell you what you need to include in the executive summary, so let’s unpack them a little:

The Intended Audience

As with all writing projects it is important to know your audience . The intended audience for an executive summary may be quite different from the intended audience for the longer document, whether it’s a policy paper, report, or something else.

The executive summary serves several possible purposes.

People may read the executive summary to find out if they need to read the full report. This group may include people within the organisation and outside, but the report is likely to touch on what they do every day. They will often be subject experts; they just need to know if there is anything new that they should read. This group will be looking for a broad summary of the contents of the wider paper.

People may want to find out if they’d find the full report interesting and relevant , even if not strictly essential. Again, this group is likely to be subject experts, but may also include analysts searching for a particular ‘angle’ on the subject. This group will also welcome a straightforward summary of the contents.

They may read the executive summary instead of the full report . It’s this group that you really need to worry about, because they’re likely to include the Board or executive team of your organisation, as well as journalists. What goes into the executive summary, therefore, is the message that they’re going to take away, that may well be spread more widely. For these people, the executive summary is their window onto the subject and it needs to be transparent, not opaque, if they are to understand it.

Think about your intended audience: who do you want to read your executive summary and why?

Don’t worry about other people who might read it; this is your intended audience , the people to whom you or your immediate line manager are going to send the summary. If the summary is for publication, which groups do you most want to read it?

What Does Your Intended Audience Need to Know?

Once you have identified your intended audience, you can then think about what they need to know or do as a result of reading your paper. This can be split into two parts:

First categorise the document by whether it needs action or is for information only. This will determine the language that you use.

Next, you need to identify what, when they have finished reading, are the key messages that you want your audience to have in their heads. Information and concepts that they did not have before.

Top Tip A good way to think about the key content is to imagine meeting your boss or CEO in the car park or at the coffee machine. What three key points about your document would you want to tell them?

Work on reducing your key messages down to three, or at the most, five bullet points of one or two sentences. Working on them before you start writing will mean that they are absolutely clear in your head as you write.

Writing your Executive Summary

Some organisations have very clear structures that are used for documents like executive summaries and others are more open.

Before you start, check whether you need to work within a specific structure or not. For example, if you are writing a summary of an academic report for submission, you may have a word count restriction, or need to remain within one side of paper.

When you are writing your executive summary, you should keep your intended audience in mind at all times and write it for them.

If your audience includes your boss or Chief Executive think: how much do they already know, and how much do you need to explain?

If your audience includes journalists, you probably need to explain everything. If it’s simply as a summary of a paper because you have to publish one, then you simply need to summarise the paper.

If you find yourself getting bogged down in the detail at this stage, it’s a good idea to talk to someone else about what to include.

The language you use needs to be fairly formal, whether or not the summary is intended for publication. If in doubt, check out our page: Formal and Informal Writing .

Broadly, an executive summary, as you might expect, summarises the main points of the underlying paper, and draws out the key points. It usually has three sections: introduction, main body and conclusion.

The introduction sets the scene, and explains what the paper is about, including what action needs to be taken as a result. It doesn’t need to be more than one or two sentences. For an internal paper, you might write:

This paper explains the findings of the research about [subject] and its relevance to the organisation. It notes five key findings, and makes three recommendations for action within the organisation. You are asked to take note of these, and decide whether the recommendations should be implemented.

For an executive summary of a published paper, it is not unusual for the first paragraph to be more attention-grabbing.

For example, from a recently-published report about green energy and the internet:

For the estimated 2.5 billion people around the world who are connected to the internet, it is impossible to imagine life without it. The internet has rewoven the fabric of our daily lives – how we communicate with each other, work and entertain ourselves – and become a foundation of the global economy.

[Source: Greenpeace, Clicking Clean ].

This example still sets the scene: the importance of the internet, but the idea here is to keep people reading, not just provide information. Again, it’s all about your audience and what they need or want.

The main body of the text outlines the key findings and/or recommendations from the report or paper to which this is the summary. The main section needs to focus on the interesting and most relevant bits of the report.

Most importantly, the main section of the executive summary needs to stand alone without the reader having to refer to the main body of the report or policy paper. This is worth checking by getting someone who doesn’t know much about the subject to read it over for you.

Finally, you need a conclusion , which outlines the take-home messages or action needed from the person reading the report. Bullet points are a useful form to highlight the key points, and this is where your three to five messages come in.

Once you’ve finished, check it against our checklist to make sure that you’ve covered everything.

Checklist for writing an executive summary

• Have you kept in mind the audience at all times?
• Have you addressed it to them?
• Have you met any word count or structural requirements?
• Have you clearly outlined the key messages and any action needed as a result?
• Does the executive summary make sense by itself, without the report attached?

Final Words of Warning

An executive summary cannot be all things to all people. You only have a few hundred words. You need to focus firmly on your intended audience and their needs. Other people may find it useful; your intended audience relies on it.

Continue to: How to Write a Report How to Write a Business Case

See also: Commercial Awareness Employability Skills Note-Taking

Case Study Summary

Ai generator.

It doesn’t always take an expert to fix a problem. Have you ever had a light in your house that doesn’t go on? Well, it’s not an engineering project , so it wouldn’t take a genius to identify if it’s a busted light bulb or a wiring issue. For these two cases, you can easily solve one problem but might need the help of an electrician for the other. When you encounter a particular situation, basic knowledge can help you to overcome it. And when you’ve dealt with the dilemma, what comes out may be additional knowledge on how to fix similar problems. And sometimes, life just gives you these things to test how well you can handle it. In academic settings, the presentation of these solutions can be considered a case study summary.

To get a firm grip on the principles and characteristics of discipline, you may need to test out what you know through given situations. In the fields of social science, business, and research, these situations are called case studies. And the initial analysis report is called a case study summary. A case executive summary is what the readers first encounter before they decide if the case is worth examining. Your case summary saves readers time in understanding the situation you’ve presented. It holds important information about medical or business case studies that your readers need to take in.

What a Case Study Summary Isn’t

Many may assume that a case study summary is the same as an abstract. They are relatively similar, but they have their key differences. A research executive summary is for those outside the academic spectrum. An abstract is for professors, research analysts, and anyone in the academe. The case study summary is also not the introduction, although it may contain similar content, they don’t share the same purpose. It is also not the preface of the study. Most importantly, it is not just a collection of random highlights within the analysis. The format of a case study summary is for the understanding of the collected data.

10+ Case Study Summary Example

A lot of case studies are hard to understand. Some people even dread the idea of reading the whole research project from start to finish. Thankfully, there is a more natural way to grasp the context of the study. That is through case study summaries. If you are working o a case study, you should be able to write a comprehensive overview of your own. To help you figure out the outline and format of your summary, here are 10+ case study summary examples you can check out.

1. Master Technology Case Study Summary Example

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4. Sample Case Studies Summary Example

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6. Commissioner Case Study Summary Example

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8. Formal Case Study Summary Example

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10. Corporation Case Studies Summary Example

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11. Standard Case Study Summary Example

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The Making an Effective Case Study Summary

As a researcher, you wouldn’t want your readers to have a hard time making sense of your case analysis . All the effort you put into making that can go to waste if it isn’t easy to understand. What you need is a compelling case study summary. If your review has the right information, your reader can level with you in no time. Here are some tricks to making a good case study summary.

1. Decide the Need

After writing an entire case study, the last thing you want is more report writing. That is why the first step to making a useful case summary is deciding if there is a need to have one. Some case studies that are considerably easier to understand don’t need case study summaries. But if your decision making says that you need it, then you better start!

2. Decide the Length

The length of the summary doesn’t always reflect how much information it holds. It can, however, determine how well of a writer you are. Your overview can be as concise as you want or as detailed as it needs to be. For as long as your research summary is readable, any length will do.

3. Prepare Data

The next step is conducting data analysis to figure out which data you are going to add to your case study summary. Pick out the most important details and the data most likely to raise questions. Anticipating these questions can help you formulate possible answers to add in your summary.

4. Organize Data

Making sure your data is organized is part and parcel to having a comprehensive case study summary. You can write a short introduction to open your summary and explain the purpose of your study. You then explain your solutions to the problem statement . Make sure no factoid overlaps another to avoid confusion.

5. Format Content

A continuous piece of writing can make a reader hesitate. Format your summary in a way that doesn’t seem too daunting. Divide your content, add a few white spaces. You have to let your readers’ eyes rest when scanning your summary. Don’t make your summary datasheet intimidating to look at.

When handling cases, whether you are a market analyst of a social science researcher, case study summaries are your best friends in data collection.

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Business Case Executive Summary Example Template

A business case executive summary example is an executive summary for a business report format. Check out this customizable template from Venngage.

• Design style modern
• Colors light
• Size Letter (8.5 x 11 in)
• File type PNG, PDF, PowerPoint
• Plan business

A business case executive summary example is a document that helps users to write their executive summaries. Business case executive summary examples provide a general template for writing a succinct and effective executive summary, as well as give examples of how to use it in real-world situations. Business case executive summary examples help users by providing them with a guide for what to include in an executive summary, as well as how to organize that information into a clear and convincing document. After reading through the example, users will be able to easily create their executive summaries by following the guidelines provided. There are several benefits of using business case executive summary examples: they save time, they are easy to understand, they are versatile enough to be used across many different types of business cases, and they allow users to create their custom templates based on what works best for them. Anyone who needs an easy way to create an effective executive summary can use this business case executive summary example! This infographic from Venngage is a great way to make sure you're communicating

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Home | News & Insights | How to Write an Executive Summary

How to Write an Executive Summary

3rd Sep, 2024

Depending on the type of organisation you’re in and the work involved, an executive summary can be an incredibly useful way to quickly and clearly communicate the key takeaways of a larger document. With a greater understanding of how to effectively compose an executive summary, you can ensure that any project documents, proposals or surveys provide the relevant information for stakeholders, and convey the intended message. In this guide, we will explain how to write an executive summary, with all the best tips and details to ensure you can successfully create tailored summaries for your business.

What is an executive summary?

Before we look at how to write one, it’s important to know exactly what an executive summary is. An executive summary is essentially an overview of a document, more detail-rich and often long documents . The exact length of your executive summary and its contents will depend on what document it is summarising. However, executive summaries typically range from one to two pages long. Your summary should share all the information that your readers and stakeholders need to know about the document, providing them with the details they need to succeed before they have even read the main body of the document.

When are executive summaries used?

Executive summaries are most commonly used in the following types of documents:

• Research reports
• School reports
• Environmental studies
• Project proposals
• Market surveys
• Business cases
• Project plans

Why are executive summaries important?

If you’re writing any of the above documents an executive summary should be an essential component. This is because your readers might not have time to go through the full document straight away after initially receiving it. Therefore, a strong executive summary should be able to provide a clear overview of the contents of the document, and when they do intend to go through it fully, it should keep their attention and motivate them to continue reading .

Additionally, the summary might contain important details for stakeholders, ensuring they can prepare for future meetings and quickly follow up on specific areas of the document.

What should an executive summary include?

A high-quality executive summary should offer a brief statement of the key topics being covered within the document. It’s important to keep in mind that it is a summary, meaning you should keep the language succinct and to the point, aiming to stay within the one to two-page range referenced earlier in this guide. The main elements that you will want to include in your executive summary are:

• An overview of what the document is about, such as the challenges a business is currently having, or a proposal for a new product.
• A clear analysis of the problem.
• Background information that applies to the reader.
• Conclusions the author has reached.

How to write an executive summary

Your executive summary should be written in a professional manner , as well as being clear and concise. It can be beneficial before you start writing it to do some research and potentially find a template that reflects the type of summary or document you’re writing. For example, E-Sign has a wide range of useful templates that our clients can utilise, including a grant proposal template , that features an executive summary section. Also, you should ask any questions to your colleagues or management prior to writing, to ensure that you format and style the summary appropriately to your organisation . Follow the steps below to write a great executive summary.

1. Start with the problem and proposed solution 

First, make sure that you have read the document in its entirety multiple times, so you can quickly highlight the main points, problems, and advice. You should begin your executive summary by explaining why the document and the project it discusses are important . 

Clearly explain the background detail of what the problem is, including any relevant research or feedback that supports this. This should be followed by why it is essential to solve the problem, including how the resolution will benefit your customers and other stakeholders. 

For example, if your document is proposing an environmental study, you should establish the value of the study, what information it can provide in order to make crucial sustainable changes, who will benefit from the outcome of the study etc.

2. Detail the project’s objectives or the solution it intends to provide

After presenting the problem in the first part of your executive summary, you will want to follow up by outlining your solution . This includes explaining and convincing your readers why this solution is the best option to solve the problem. You can support these claims by broadly describing what will happen during the project and the intended outcomes. 

However, the executive summary will be situated at the start of the proposal/project plan. So it’s ok not to have all your deliverables and milestones mapped out at this stage, more details will be provided to the reader as they progress through the document. If you want to include an overview of the project’s core deliverables and timelines, it may be beneficial to create a project roadmap before writing this part of your executive summary.

3. Explore the value of the solution

For this part of the summary, you will start to go into more detail about how the solution will impact and improve upon the challenges discussed at the beginning of the document. This is likely to include any expected results, relevant financial details, project risks, and potential benefits. It’s common in this section of the summary to relate the project to your overall company goals, objectives, and values.

4. Conclude with the importance of your work

Once you have provided the key information to your readers and stakeholders, you should close your executive summary by emphasising the impact and importance of this project on your organisation and the wider community overall . It should leave a lasting impression on the reader, resonating with their values and encouraging them to support the proposed plan. Incorporating a call to action and leaving the reader wanting to continue the document are good ways to conclude your executive summary.

Executive summary example template

Every executive summary might look different, depending on the type of document you are creating the summary for, your industry and organisation etc. When considering how to format your executive summary, you should keep the intended audience in mind and whether your company has any set requirements. Whilst the above details the elements you will want to include in terms of written content, below is a brief executive summary template, showing how you may want to lay out your content when writing your own.

[Introduction/problem statement]

Example – The city of (city/town name) has been facing a steady decline for various reasons including (increased unemployment rates, and increased crime rates amongst young people). According to recent research by (well-known institution) (relevant statistics, e.g., anti-social behaviour by young people has risen by 10%). In correlation with this (more relevant statistics, e.g., 1 in 3 families say that they would benefit from having more activities for their kids to do outside of school) .

[Proposed solution]

Example – Our architectural project has been effectively planned to address the core issues discussed above, and avoid the deficiencies of previous attempts at bringing a community building to the local area. The project is not just about constructing the building itself, but also ensuring that an infrastructure is in place that actively encourages the community to utilise the space and services it will provide. It will create job opportunities and support families that are looking for positive activities their children can become involved in.

Example – Our objectives for this project are (list objectives) with regular reviews to ensure we are meeting the targets we set out. Following the successful completion of this project, our next step is implementing our work on a wider scale to make a difference in the lives of individuals and communities around the world. The total cost to carry out this work is (total figure) and your investment of (figure) is the ideal amount to complete our funding and get the project started.

[Conclusion and next steps]

Example – There is a growing need for a modern community centre where children and young people can go to give them purpose, and activities that are relevant to their interests. It’s important to invest in projects that will support younger people, allowing them to successfully flourish and positively transition into the working world. By the end of this project, we anticipate (outcomes including data estimates, e.g.10,000 people can benefit from the community centre we build). Find out more about our organisation and this project here.

A well-written executive summary can set the tone for the rest of your proposal/project plan , and make a significant difference in achieving the intended outcomes of the document. For example, if you’re sending a proposal to potential investors, your executive summary will provide them with the initial facts that might influence their decision before they have read the full document. 

As an electronic signature and digital document solutions provider, E-Sign understands the importance of creating and sending high-quality documents for signature, like proposals and plans that feature executive summaries. There are many benefits to implementing an e-signature platform like E-Sign into your document workflows including increased efficiency, cost savings, reduced carbon emissions and more . 

Contact us today to discuss your requirements and our digital transformation team can help to provide you with a tailored plan that meets your needs. You can also get started with E-Sign by registering for our 14-day free trial , allowing you to try the features and functionality of the platform yourself, and see how it can support your organisation’s document processes.

Luke Garrett

Head of digital transformation.

Luke works with organisations to evaluate their existing processes, assessing the organisational change and change management processes that a business may require. He leads organisations through the process and ensures a smooth transition to the most effective operations.

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Former PRASA Executive Sentenced to 15 Years for Fraudulent Qualifications.

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Daniel Mthimkhulu, once a high-ranking executive at the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA), has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for fraud and misrepresentation of his academic credentials.

The sentencing, handed down at the Palm Ridge Commercial Crimes Court, marks the culmination of a legal battle that began unraveling nearly a decade ago.

Mthimkhulu, who served as the head of engineering at PRASA from 2010 to 2015, was found guilty on nine counts of fraud.

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During his tenure, he earned an annual salary of R2.8 million, a position he secured under the pretense of possessing a diploma, a degree, and a doctorate in engineering, all of which were later proven to be fraudulent.

The exposure of Mthimkhulu’s academic deceit came to light following a 2015 report by Rapport, which highlighted PRASA’s purchase of oversized locomotives that could not operate on South African railway lines.

This blunder was attributed to Mthimkhulu’s alleged incompetence, exacerbated by his lack of genuine qualifications.

Despite receiving support from then-CEO Lucky Montana, Mthimkhulu could not substantiate his educational claims.

In a related legal development in 2019, the Gauteng High Court ordered Mthimkhulu to repay PRASA R5.7 million, representing the salary he received under false pretenses.

Despite these setbacks, Mthimkhulu has consistently claimed his innocence, arguing that he is a victim of a political witch hunt rather than an individual guilty of professional misconduct.

The case of Daniel Mthimkhulu not only highlights the issue of fraudulent qualifications within corporate South Africa but also underscores the broader implications of such misconduct on public entities like PRASA, which has struggled with operational and financial inefficiencies for years.

This conviction serves as a stern warning to professionals across sectors about the severe consequences of misrepresenting one’s credentials.

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