Knowing how to prepare the executive summary in your company is essential for the launch of any business. Along with the elevator pitch, it presents the project to potential investors, makes it known to mentors, and presents it to institutions seeking grants or other types of aid. All this is very concise and attractive, trying to capture attention without using fireworks that detract from credibility.
What is the Executive Summary, and What is it For?
The executive summary is one of the fundamental parts of the business plan, but it also functions as a stand-alone document. It offers all the essential information to present and defend a business project in a maximum length of two or three pages.
Not only is it used in the launch phase, but it is also helpful throughout your journey when introducing yourself to potential partners when participating in company events or even as a business card to potential clients.
Depending on the objective pursued, it must adapt its wording, and one or another information prevails, so it is advisable always to have different versions prepared to use the most appropriate one for the use that will give to it.
Example of An Executive Summary: The Importance of Structure
There is no established model, although the practice has established specific uses that we will see below. In all cases, must take special care in its presentation and the choice of language and wording. It would help if you keep these tips in mind when writing an executive summary
Attractive writing. Do not reveal everything at the beginning; do it so that there is a hook to continue reading.
Includes statistics—at least one shocking, thought-provoking, and capturing the reader’s attention.
Highlight Those Aspects that Interest you the Most
Any information must be supported by research and solid arguments.
Focus on the positive. The risks are detailed in the business plan.
Company Data
A brief heading with the company name and contact information is essential to locating the company and submitting the executive summary. Also include other basic information about your business, such as who started it, when, what role it plays, and where it is located.
Presentation of Objectives and Main Idea
This presentation should not occupy more than four or five lines if possible. Reading it should help to understand what project it is, the sector in which it operates, the public it is aimed at, and its competitive advantages. It is necessary to highlight the idea that makes it different and the primary objective that it pursues.
The Description
This part must have a list of competitive advantages. It is a section similar to the previous one but in which the information is offered in more detail and organized in different points: what the business consists of, the different audiences it is aimed at and its strengths, highlighting the use of its technology if there were.
It is essential to explain the current state of development of the project, what phase of implementation it is in and how it has been received by the market, stopping at the sales achieved, if any. You should never forget to make a sales estimate in cases where financing is sought: and be very careful when establishing it. To convey confidence, it must be credible.
The Market
In a very summarized way, this section will offer data on the current state of the market we are targeting and its trend, whether it is stable, growing, or decreasing.
Figures should be offered on the volume of sales that it moves and the market share that we could access, highlighting the possible scalability that our proposal has. It is also worth mentioning the existing competition.
The Strategy
The time has come to explain how our project will penetrate the market, if possible, detailing the different phases of action, the implementation of the different marketing channels, and the marketing actions that will be undertaken.
The Team
This is an essential part of any executive summary, although it is not always included. The team leading the project must be presented, highlighting their training, experience, and fundamental knowledge of the market in which they operate.
If it starts from an initiative of several partners, it is convenient to demonstrate the complementarity in their management skills. It is also necessary to assess whether to hire an employee whose contribution to the company’s objective is strategic due to their experience or level of responsibility (for example, a commercial director).
Of course, this is not the time to err on the side of false modesty, but we must remember that writing the executive summary must always move in terms of objectivity.
How to Approach the Investment Section
Investment and financial needs are a section that must include if the project is seeking financing, although, on other occasions, it is done to report the investment that the project has disbursed as a sign of its strength.
The anticipated needs must be specified in the first case, assigning the quantities by phases. In this section, it is not considered essential to specify its destination by item, as should do it in the business plan.
Still, in some way, it must be clear that the bulk of the investment is allocated to the priority needs of the project, not to the hefty salaries of its managers or sumptuary expenses.
As a conclusion to the executive summary, a summary should be made of the reasons why the project is presented as a real business opportunity, using convincing arguments.
Also Read: Primary Skills for Middle Managers
