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Executive Summary Template and Sample

Also known as: proposal executive summary template and sample, executive synopsis template and sample, business executive summary, executive abstract template, RFP executive summary template and sample, management synopsis template, executive value proposition template and sample, management summary template, abstract template, executive summary, winning theme, proposal executive summary template and sample, business executive summary template and sample, RFP executive summary, perfect executive summary template and sample, letter proposal executive summary template and sample, formal proposal executive summary template and sample, RFP response executive summary template and sample, proposal executive summary and sample, win theme, business executive summary, bid executive summary template and sample, executive overview, RFP executive summary template and sample, or Request for Proposal executive summary template and sample.

Use the executive summary template and sample provided in your FREE RFP Letters Toolkit to create your own executive summary from a template.

What this page can help you do:

understand what an executive summary is -and what it is not;
discover techniques in order to write an executive summary that stands above the competition;
learn common pitfalls that make people write an abstract instead of an executive summary;
leverage your free executive summary template and sample; and
read the best books and web references about the perfect executive summary.

Executive Summary: Definition

Executive Summary Definition

An Executive Summary has basically nothing to do with product presentation, and everything to do with a persuasive sales pitch. It is far more than an abstract which merely presents the rest of the document -it's your unique opportunity to convince the reader that your solution provides the best value proposition: the best benefit at the lowest cost.

The more technical your proposal, the more important the executive summary is likely to be. Unlike the abstract, the executive summary steers clear of technicalities to instead concentrate on substantiating the benefits for the customer.

Also known as: business executive summary, management summary, or executive management summary.

Common misspellings: excutive summary, exective summary, execitive summary, eccutive summary, managment summary, executive sumary, executive summry, or eecutive summary.

How to Write an Executive Summary

Executive Summary First

By writing your Executive Summary first, you ensure that the rest of your proposal will be aligned with the persuasive message you want to deliver.

Executive Summary Content

Your executive summary should contain your value proposition, which should be seized right away by your reader. Read the discussion How to write an Executive Summary that will help you identify the needed information for laying down your value proposition through the use of win themes.

It is highly recommended that you to read the suggestions below in order to properly and successfully use the executive summary template and sample. When you write your value proposition, use representation instead of marketing puffery or commercial fluff.

Use the executive summary template and sample provided in your FREE RFP Letters Toolkit to create your own executive summary from a template.
First, there are 3 critical items -no more, no less- that your executive summary must present. You will find these 3 most important items in your executive summary template.
To give credibility to your executive summary, these important items have to be presented in a simple, declarative, and persuasive manner by applying the S.P.A. rule to your value proposition. Learn what is the S.P.A. rule and how to use it by requesting your FREE executive summary template.
Finally, to put all odds on your side, your executive summary must, in its conclusion, highlight the most important point of your value proposition. Discover the most efficient closing statement in your executive summary template.
Final tips. Use action verbs in your value proposition to show the path of enlightenment to your customer. Write your executive summary for the best readability, meaning the lowest grade level possible. This way, you ensure that no barrier hampers your reader's full understanding of your point. Correct, edit, and revise your executive summary -but only when you're finished writing it.
Use the executive summary template and sample provided in your FREE RFP Letters Toolkit to create your own executive summary from a template.
Since things sometimes get a little more complicated than usual, remember to consult a lawyer for further information before considering your executive summary as definitive.

By following this executive summary format as an executive summary template for your proposal, you ensure that your writing will be as persuasive as possible.

Question:
Are executive summary and abstract the same?

Answer:
If you think so, you have just lost your chance to persuade first hand.

Abstract vs. Executive Summary:
The Key Differences

In most people's mind, if abstract and executive summary are not usually designating the same written material, these two words are, at least, the source of uncertainty and confusion.

To know exactly what are the differences between abstract and executive summary, and, thus, to stand out from your competitors, read Abstract vs. Executive Summary: Discover The Main Differences.

FREE Executive Summary Template and Sample

Also known as: abstract/executive summary template and sample.

Use the executive summary template and sample provided in your FREE RFP Letters Toolkit to create your own executive summary from a template, or any other letter or document template related to the solicitation and selection process.

Both executive summary template and sample follow the S.P.A. rule.

About the executive summary sample

The executive summary sample provided is about a fictive company offering a training program to hospitals and medical centers. The executive summary template provides also advices on how to customize your writing for a more academic audience (e.g. grant proposal for scientific research). You just need to change the content while keeping the form to make it yours.

About the executive summary template

More generally, the executive summary template can be applied to any content (e.g. formal solicitation, unsolicited proposal, formal business proposal, grant application for scientific research) to any organization (e.g. government or federal agencies, public or private for-profit organization, non-profit organization, small and medium businesses [SMB]) in any socio-economic area.

Use the executive summary template and sample provided in your FREE RFP Letters Toolkit to create your own executive summary from a template.

Executive Summary Tips, Dos, and Don'ts

Here are some tips on how to write your executive summary, whether for a formal, informal, solicited, or unsolicited proposal or RFP.

Do's and Don'ts of the perfect Executive Summary:

Be persuasive (your executive summary format should follow the SPA rule, unveiled in your FREE Executive Summary Template)
Don't be demonstrative (don't focus on features)
Write your executive summary with active-voice sentences
Keep a strong, enthusiastic, and proactive language
Convert passive-voice sentences as much as possible
Write simple, short sentences intended to be read by an executive
Keep your executive summary short (1 page for every 20-50 pages)
Write your executive summary from an executive summary template and sample
Don't provide unnecessary, technical details, remember, an executive should be able to read it
Avoid excessive jargon, and write the definition first
Correct spelling, punctuation, style, and grammar errors
Write primarily for your customer, not for yourself (use their organization's name more often than yours), so don't start with a description of your organization
Write primarily about your customer (benefits), not about you or your product (features)

Executive Summary Template and Sample: Top Books

Persuasive Business Proposals
by Tom Sant
224 pages
ISBN: 0814471536

Abstract:
In a business climate marked by increased competition, tight budgets and stiffer regulations, your prospective clients are more intent than ever on making smart vendor choices. Before they'll give you that contract, you've got to prove to them that your firm represents their best, or only option.

Executive summary:
There is a section dedicated to the executive summary template and sample, which addresses the abstract vs. executive summary dilemma by providing differences between abstract vs. executive summary, scientific research abstract or abstract in proposals for grant and executive summary. Indeed, discover how the abstract for scientific research proposals is roughly the equivalent of the executive summary in sales proposals. Checklists, questions, and directions are provided on how to write an executive summary. Plus, at the end of the book, a whole section is dedicated to style, grammar, and common errors, which is an invaluable aid to helping you better write an executive summary.

One of the best on the way towards the perfect executive summary.

Read more about:Persuasive Business Proposals
The Consultant's Guide to Proposal Writing: How to Satisfy Your Clients and Double Your Income
by Herman Holtz
320 pages
ISBN: 0471249173

Abstract:
When clients make the decision to hire you, they are putting more than money on the line. They are also putting their company's future and its reputation in your hands. That's why your success depends on your ability to gain prospective clients' complete confidence -not only in the solutions you offer, but in your capabilities, and character.

Executive summary:
The Consultant's Guide to Proposal Writing dedicates 7% of the total pages to the executive summary template and sample:
- What is an Executive Summary?
- Uses of an executive Summary
- Relevant principles in writing an executive summary
- An executive summary case history
- How long should an executive summary be?
- How to write tight executive summaries
- Executive summary in a letter proposal
Read more about: The Consultant's Guide to Proposal Writing
Handbook For Writing Proposals
by L. Sue Baugh, Robert J. Hamper
224 pages
ISBN: 0844232742
Abstract:
In this easy-to-use, concise, and thorough handbook, two veteran business professionals guide you through the entire proposal-writing process, from the initial contact through completion and follow-up.

You'll benefit from the authors' expertise and insight on:
- Which jobs to target -and which to pass up
- Setting up a strong proposal team
- Evaluating potential projects
- Preparing schedules and identifying tasks
- Writing and producing a first-rate proposal
- Delivering a show-stopping client presentation
The book is an invaluable resource for building your own tool/checklist/matrix template set.

Executive summary:
Unlike other books, there are 20 pages dedicated to the executive summary, that is 10% of the book, which gives more information to help you better write an executive summary:
- Who reads the executive summary?
- Executive summary outline
- Differences between Abstract vs. Executive Summary
- Time/cost analysis and executive summary
- The corporate profile in the executive summary
- Common errors and how to write an executive summary
- Executive summary checklist
Lots of tips are provided on how to write an executive summary.

Read more about: Handbook For Writing Proposals

Executive Summary Template and Sample: Web Resources

	The Art of the Executive Summary by Guy Kawasaki (You really have to know Guy Kawasaki and read his books).
	*Noise and Elimination of the Nonessential* by Presentation Zen
	Bill Gates' Executive Speeches and Keynotes by Bill Gates
	Informative Abstract vs Executive Summary by The University of Western Ontario
	Collection of Articles on How to Write Abstracts vs Executive Summaries by UK-Student.net

WANT TO WRITE YOUR EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FROM A TEMPLATE?
Learn tips on how to write a persuasive, professional executive summary from the executive summary template and sample provided in your FREE RFP Toolkit, 2008 Edition.

In it, you will find lots of templates and samples of professional RFP letters, including the executive summary template for writing your own executive summary.

It's FREE!

No copyrights -so the template is all yours.

"Your executive summary template and sample should be the guideline for developing the rest of your offer, not the opposite."

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