skills/client-deliverables/references/executive-presentations.md

# Executive presentations

## Build for the occasion

Identify the decision, who can make it, time available for discussion, and whether the deck is projected, read ahead, or used as a leave-behind. Preserve the requested slide count and template. Organize an analytical slide around a clear point; related exhibits can support that point.

A useful arc is decision request and recommendation, relevant context, supporting evidence, options and trade-offs, economics and risk, then the next decision or action. Adapt it to what the audience already knows. Do not force context slides into a short update or three findings into a case that turns on one.

For layout and visual direction, use [slide design](slide-design.md). Storylining includes the sequence of visual forms, not just a list of titles. Give a bridge, comparison, operating diagram, or decision page the composition that makes its argument clearest; avoid applying the same text-box layout to every topic.

## Exhibit selection and fidelity

| Relationship | Useful exhibit | Check |
|---|---|---|
| Categories or options | Bar chart or compact table | Common units, comparable scope, clear ordering. |
| Time trend | Line chart | Equal time spacing or explicitly irregular dates; distinguish actuals and forecasts. |
| Components of a total | Stacked bar | Categories are mutually exclusive and sum to the denominator. |
| Change from opening to closing total | Waterfall/bridge | Signed movements accumulate to the ending total; intermediate totals do not count twice. |
| Association | Scatter | Matching observations, definitions, units; no causal inference from correlation alone. |
| Distribution | Histogram or box plot | Sample size, bin choices, outliers, and population. |
| Sensitivity | Tornado or threshold table | Consistent baseline, plausible driver ranges, direction of impact. |
| Options under uncertainty | Scenario table | Coherent assumptions; probabilities only when supported. |
| Schedule | Gantt or milestone map | Dependencies, real durations, capacity, and clear distinction between target and forecast. |

Use titles and annotations to state the finding without distorting the data. Label sources, dates, units, and limitations. Avoid unlabeled truncated axes, color-only meanings, decorative precision, and ratings without defined scales. Qualitative evidence can support a decision without a manufactured number.

## Density and legibility

Use the client's typography when supplied. As starting points, projected decks often need roughly 24–32pt body text and larger titles; read-aheads can use roughly 16–20pt body text with supporting notes sized for the actual display. These are design starting points, not blanket minimums. Inspect at the intended reading size and split or simplify content before shrinking it.

Make source notes readable. Keep table rows and chart labels to what fits; move drill-down into backup when useful. Give RAG status a text label or symbol in addition to color, and define its meaning. Use accessible contrast, consistent number formats, and alt text where supported.

## Discussion and backup

For a decision meeting, state the ask, authority, funding relative to constraints, downside, and conditions. Anticipate the strongest supported objection and prepare the evidence needed to answer it. Add backup only for plausible questions, not a mandatory catalog of every analysis.

Where stakeholder pre-briefing is part of the engagement, prepare a short discussion pack and questions that can change the recommendation. Drafting it does not authorize outreach. Do not claim consensus, attendance, approval, or an observed stakeholder reaction unless supplied.

Mark optional slides so the presenter can adapt to discussion. Distinguish the primary argument from supporting detail. After a material number or conclusion changes, reconcile all affected exhibits and the summary before circulating an updated version within the user's authorization.

## Finish

Read the titles alone to test the argument. Inspect the sequence for visual hierarchy, useful variation, and unnecessary repetition. Then inspect every rendered slide for title-exhibit agreement, misleading geometry, clipping, overlap, legibility, and consistent sources. A technically valid PowerPoint is not sufficient evidence of a readable or well-designed deck.