Board presentation template

Board members open the pack days before the meeting. A title that already states the outcome frames everything that follows.

• Meeting, quarter and date
• The one-sentence message: the result plus the decisions you need
• Presenter and a confidentiality note

Answer first: what happened, what it means and what you need. Many board members read nothing else in detail.

• The headline number and its change
• One sentence on what drove it
• The decision you will ask for
• Where the risks are covered

Four numbers the board tracks every quarter, always in the same order, so a change is visible at a glance.

• Revenue, margin, cash and one operational KPI
• Change against last year or plan
• A note on unaudited or restated figures

Shows the source of growth before anyone asks, and separates organic growth from acquisitions.

• Revenue by region, product or segment
• Last year next to this year
• A takeaway sentence and a source line

A bridge explains the margin through its drivers, which moves the discussion from totals to causes.

• Start and end value
• Four to six drivers with signs
• Which drivers are structural and which will reverse

One line per initiative with one owner. Red and amber come first so the meeting time goes where it is needed.

• Initiative, RAG status, next milestone, owner
• A short reason next to every red or amber
• Nothing on green items beyond the next milestone

Puts every material risk on one page, so the board sees which ones need action instead of discussing each in turn.

• Likelihood against impact
• The two or three risks above tolerance, highlighted
• Owners and mitigation in the notes or appendix

Ends on the ask, numbered, so the minutes can record each decision.

• Each decision as a verb plus amount or scope
• What the board is only asked to note
• The deadline for pre-read questions