# Executive Summary Builder

Condense a longer report into decision-relevant findings, implications, evidence, uncertainty, tradeoffs, risks, options, and required leadership actions.

## Usage note

Write from the final source report and preserve its material uncertainty. A summary should reduce reading time, not erase evidence boundaries or turn recommendations into settled facts.

## How to use this template

1. Define the audience, decision, authority, deadline, source report, and evidence cutoff.
2. Select only findings that change the decision, recording their evidence and limitations.
3. Distinguish observations, interpretations, options, recommendations, and unresolved uncertainty.
4. State tradeoffs, risks, requested action, owner, deadline, and review condition.
5. Compare the summary with the final report and test comprehension with a fresh reader.

## Blank template

### Summary purpose

- **Source report and version:** [Enter]
- **Evidence cutoff and scope:** [Enter]
- **Executive audience:** [Name/role]
- **Decision or awareness needed:** [Enter]
- **Decision authority:** [Describe]
- **Deadline and reason:** [Enter]
- **One-sentence situation:** [Write]

### Finding card

Duplicate for each decision-relevant finding.

- **Finding:** [State directly]
- **Source section and evidence:** [Reference]
- **Observation versus interpretation:** [Label]
- **Magnitude, denominator, and period:** [Enter]
- **Implication for the decision:** [Explain]
- **Limitation or uncertainty:** [State]
- **Counterevidence or dissent:** [Enter or None]
- **Confidence:** [High / Medium / Low and why]

### Options and recommendation

- **Option:** [Enter]
- **Expected benefit:** [Evidence]
- **Cost and effort:** [Enter]
- **Dependencies:** [List]
- **Risk and affected groups:** [Describe]
- **Reversibility:** [High / Medium / Low]
- **Recommendation:** [Choose or state none]
- **Reason:** [Connect to findings and tradeoffs]

### Action and verification

- **Decision requested:** [Write exactly]
- **Decision owner:** [Name/role]
- **Immediate next action:** [Enter]
- **Action owner and deadline:** [Enter]
- **Review or stop condition:** [Enter]
- [ ] Summary statements trace to the final report.
- [ ] Material limitations and disagreement remain visible.
- [ ] A fresh reader identified the intended decision correctly.
- **Reviewers and version:** [Names/date]