How to Create an Executive Summary

An executive summary is usually one or two pages long and condenses the most important points from the proposal or report for a busy manager - the executive. An executive summary is written to help the reader reach a major decision based on the report or proposal.

Your goal is to tell your employer concisely what findings the report includes, what those findings mean for the company or organization, and what action, if any, needs to be taken. Managers use executive summaries so they will not have to wade through entire reports. They are most concerned with issues such as costs, profits, resources, personnel, timetables, and feasibility.

Your summary must supply key information on the executive’s four E’s: evaluation, economy, efficiency, and expediency.

The order of information in an executive summary does not have to follow strictly the order of the report itself. In fact, some executive summaries start with recommendations. Find out your boss’s preference.