Business Report Templates and Executive Summaries

Which report do you need?

Report	Use it when	Core structure	Length
Executive summary	A long document needs a stand-alone overview	Purpose → findings → recommendation → resources → next step	1 to 2 pages
Status report	Leaders need a regular update on progress	Status labels → progress → risks → decisions needed	1 page
Analytical report	A question needs studying before a decision	Question → method → findings → recommendations	5 to 20 pages
Root cause analysis	Something went wrong and must not recur	Incident → impact → five whys → root cause → fix	2 to 4 pages
Business report	Formal annual, research or feasibility reporting	Summary → introduction → findings → conclusions → appendices	10 to 50 pages
Release notes	Users need to know what changed in a product	Version and date → new → improved → fixed → breaking changes	½ to 1 page
Company announcement	News must reach the whole organisation	The news → why → what changes → timeline → who to ask	300 to 500 words
Customer case study	A client’s success can persuade others	Client → challenge → solution → results → quote	1 to 2 pages

The executive summary in five parts

An executive summary is a short version of a longer document that must stand alone: a reader who sees only this page should still be able to decide. It is usually 5 to 10% of the full length, and you write it last.

01≈ 10% Purpose This report assesses whether to open a fourth warehouse in the Midlands.

02≈ 35% Key findings Delivery times to the region average 3.2 days, against 1.4 days elsewhere; 31% of complaints cite late delivery.

03≈ 25% Recommendation Lease a 4,000 m² site near Coventry from January 2027.

04≈ 15% Resources Set-up cost £1.2m; running cost £640,000 a year; 28 new roles.

05≈ 15% Next step Board approval on 18 July so the lease can be signed in August.

The bar shows the typical share of a one-page executive summary. Findings and the recommendation take more than half, because they are what the reader decides on.

Executive summaries that get read →Executive summary examples →

An executive status report on one screen

Executives read status reports to answer one question: does anything need me? Three sections, with a status label (a one-word rating such as on track or at risk) for each workstream, answer it in under a minute.

Store systems upgrade · Week 14 of 20Overall: at risk

1 · Status by workstream

Till installationOn trackStaff trainingOn trackCard readersAt riskStock system linkComplete

2 · Since last report New tills live in 38 of 60 stores. Staff training complete in the north region. Card reader supplier delayed shipment of 22 units to 24 June.

3 · Decision needed Approve £14,000 to rent 22 card readers so the remaining stores open on schedule, by Friday 7 June.

Executive status report templates →Project status update templates →

Root cause analysis: the five whys

A root cause analysis report explains why a problem happened so it never happens again. The five whys technique asks “why?” repeatedly until you reach a cause you can fix in a process, not in a person.

Problem Four stores ran out of bread on Saturday 1 June.
Why 1 Why? The Friday delivery was half the usual size.
Why 2 Why? The order sent to the bakery used the previous week’s sales.
Why 3 Why? The previous week included a bank holiday, when sales are lower.
Why 4 Why? The ordering system does not adjust for holidays.
Root cause Why 5 The weekly ordering checklist has no step for checking unusual weeks.

Recommendation: fix the process Add a stock check for unusual weeks to the weekly ordering checklist.

Owner: Each store manager
Starts: 10 June
Review: After 8 weeks

Read left to right: each card answers “why?” about the one before it, moving from what happened to the process gap behind it. Because the root cause is a missing step, the fix is a process change with an owner and a review date.

How to write a root cause analysis report →

Choosing a chart or a table

Use a chart when the reader needs to see a pattern, and a table when they need exact numbers. Give every chart a title that states the finding, not just the topic.

To show	Use	Title it like this
Change over time	Line chart	“Support tickets fell 30% after the new help pages”
Comparison between groups	Bar chart, sorted largest first	“North region leads on renewals”
Parts of a whole	Stacked bar, or a table if over five parts	“Two products make up 70% of revenue”
Exact figures to look up	Table	“Monthly costs by department, 2026”

From finding to recommendation

An analytical report studies a question and recommends action. Each recommendation should rest on a finding, and each finding on evidence, so a reader can trace every “we should” back to a fact.

Evidence	Finding	Recommendation
Customer survey, 1,200 responses, May 2026	64% of customers who left did so within the first 90 days.	Introduce a 90-day onboarding programme with weekly check-in emails.
Support logs, January to May 2026	Setup questions make up 41% of support tickets.	Add an in-app setup guide, owned by the product team, by September.
Pricing analysis of five competitors	Our entry price is 30% above the market average.	Test a lower-priced starter plan in one region for three months.