Outline a complete board deck
intermediateClaude SonnetExecutiveBoard Prepboarddeckpresentationmeeting-prepleadership
Use case
Use this to scaffold a board deck before the design team or your operating partners build it out. Most board decks balloon to 60+ slides because no one had a structure to start from. This prompt produces a tight outline that gives every slide a job — and lets the deck stay under 30 slides without losing substance.
The prompt
You are a former CFO who has built more than 50 board decks. Outline a complete board deck for{{company_name}}'s{{meeting_type}}board meeting on{{meeting_date}}. Inputs: - Company and stage:{{company_name}},{{stage}}- Meeting type and date:{{meeting_type}},{{meeting_date}}- Period covered:{{period}}- Key narrative arc the CEO is telling:{{narrative_arc}}- Top 3 metrics that define the period:{{top_metrics}}- Major wins, misses, and decisions:{{wins_misses_decisions}}- Strategic discussions to advance during the meeting:{{strategic_discussions}}- Items requiring formal approval:{{approvals}}- Standard sections the board expects (financials, hiring, customer health, risks):{{standard_sections}}Produce a slide-by-slide outline. For each slide: - **Slide #:** number - **Section:** which part of the deck - **Headline:** the slide title — should state the takeaway, not the topic ("Healthcare segment NRR at 138%, well ahead of plan" — not "Customer Success Update") - **Body:** 2–4 bullet outline of what the slide contains - **Speaker note:** 1–2 sentences on what the presenter will say verbally that the slide does not say Sections, in order: ## 1. Cover & Agenda (2 slides) Title slide and agenda. ## 2. Executive Summary (1–2 slides) The takeaway slide. If a board member only reads one slide, this is it. Three to five bullets covering the period, the headline metrics, the strategic posture, and the asks. ## 3. Headline Metrics (3–4 slides) Top of the funnel: ARR, growth, NRR, gross margin, cash. Each slide is one metric or a tightly grouped set, with the headline stating the takeaway. ## 4. Strategic Discussions (3–6 slides per discussion) For each discussion in{{strategic_discussions}}: framing slide, supporting data slide(s), the question for the board. ## 5. Function Updates (1 slide each, only if not in pre-read) Tight summary per function. If function updates went in pre-read, replace with a single "function summary" slide. ## 6. Customer Voice (1–2 slides) One named win story; one churn or near-miss post-mortem. Real names, real numbers. ## 7. People (1–2 slides) Hires, departures, key open roles. Trends, not full org charts. ## 8. Financials & Cash (3–4 slides) Actuals vs. plan, full-year reforecast, scenario runway. ## 9. Risks (1 slide) Top 3–5 risks the board should know we are watching, with the early-warning signal for each. ## 10. Approvals (1 slide per item) Formal items. ## 11. Executive Session (1 slide) Placeholder, no content — board only. ## 12. Appendix Detail backup not for live presentation. Outline only. Constraints: - Total slides under 30 (excluding appendix). If your outline exceeds 30, cut. - Every slide headline must state the takeaway, not the topic. - No slide exists without a speaker note. If you cannot describe what the presenter will say verbally, the slide should be cut. - Strategic discussion slides should outnumber status slides 2-to-1.
Variables
{{{{company_name}}}}Replace with your {{company name}}{{{{stage}}}}Replace with your {{stage}}{{{{meeting_type}}}}Replace with your {{meeting type}}{{{{meeting_date}}}}Replace with your {{meeting date}}{{{{period}}}}Replace with your {{period}}{{{{narrative_arc}}}}Replace with your {{narrative arc}}{{{{top_metrics}}}}Replace with your {{top metrics}}{{{{wins_misses_decisions}}}}Replace with your {{wins misses decisions}}{{{{strategic_discussions}}}}Replace with your {{strategic discussions}}{{{{approvals}}}}Replace with your {{approvals}}{{{{standard_sections}}}}Replace with your {{standard sections}}
Example
Input
company_name: Vantage Systems stage: Series B SaaS, post-Series-C, $31.6M ARR, 180 employees meeting_type: regular quarterly meeting_date: May 21, 2027 period: Q1 2027 narrative_arc: hit the number, slipped on AI module (now shipped April 30), closed SMB self-serve, landed Series C, healthcare segment compounding faster than modeled top_metrics: ARR $31.6M (105% of plan); Healthcare NRR 138% (vs. 124% blended); AI module GA shipped on date; cash runway 27 months wins_misses_decisions: Wins — Brookline $1.2M close; Series C $40M; AI module GA on April 30; Healthcare NRR ahead of plan. Misses — AI module slipped from March to April; lost Greentree renewal ($400K) to parent-co consolidation. Decisions — closed SMB self-serve and reassigned 12 of 14 affected. strategic_discussions: 1) AI compliance module commercial momentum — what's next; 2) 2028 plan shape (healthcare aggression vs. breakeven discipline); 3) M&A scouting in healthcare-adjacent analytics — start now or wait approvals: ratify Series C close terms; approve CRO equity grant; ratify CPO promotion (Sandeep) standard_sections: financials, hiring, customer health, risks
Output
## Vantage Systems — Q1 2027 Board Deck Outline ### 1. Cover & Agenda **Slide 1 — Cover** - Headline: "Vantage Systems — Q1 2027 Board Meeting, May 21" - Body: Logo, date, "Pre-read distributed May 16" - Speaker note: Welcome, time-box reminder, intro of any board guests. **Slide 2 — Agenda** - Headline: "Three discussions, three approvals, one ask" - Body: Time-boxed agenda - Speaker note: Quick walkthrough; flag the executive session at the end. ### 2. Executive Summary **Slide 3 — Q1 in one slide** - Headline: "Hit ARR plan; shipped the AI module on date; closed Series C; healthcare compounding faster than modeled" - Body: - ARR $31.6M, 105% of plan - AI compliance module GA shipped April 30 — 9 paying users in first week - Series C closed at $40M, Northgate lead - Healthcare segment NRR at 138%, well above 124% blended - One miss: lost Greentree renewal ($400K) to parent-co consolidation - Speaker note: This is the slide if you only read one. Walk through narratively in 90 seconds. ### 3. Headline Metrics **Slide 4 — ARR & growth** - Headline: "ARR $31.6M, 105% of plan, growth re-accelerating into Q2" - Body: ARR trend chart Q1 2026–Q1 2027; YoY growth; Q1 actuals vs. plan - Speaker note: Note the Q4 2026 dip from the AI slip; recovery is visible. **Slide 5 — Net revenue retention** - Headline: "Healthcare NRR at 138%, blended at 128% — segment mix shifting" - Body: NRR by segment (healthcare, mid-market general, enterprise general); cohort heatmap - Speaker note: This is the metric that surprised me most this quarter — material implications for 2028 plan. **Slide 6 — Cash & runway** - Headline: "27 months of runway post-Series C; default-alive trajectory intact" - Body: Monthly burn; runway under three scenarios; cash on hand - Speaker note: Flag that runway is calculated at current burn — Q2 burn will tick up with hiring, but not through plan. ### 4. Strategic Discussion 1: AI Compliance Module Commercial Momentum **Slide 7 — The bet, the ship, the question** - Headline: "AI module shipped on date — the question is conversion to ARR" - Body: Timeline of slip and recovery; 9 paying users in first week; commercial conversion plan for Q2 - Speaker note: I want to spend 50 minutes here. Set up the question: how aggressive should we be on the module-led pricing and bundling decision? **Slide 8 — Customer signal data** - Headline: "Top 50 healthcare accounts: 31 expressed module interest, 9 already converted" - Body: Funnel from interest → demo → trial → paid; expected curve through end Q2 - Speaker note: CPO walks through what's working and what's slowing the conversion curve. **Slide 9 — The pricing question** - Headline: "Should the module be premium-tier paid attach or embedded in healthcare tier?" - Body: Two pricing scenarios with revenue impact and adoption assumptions - Speaker note: This is a decision the board can help shape. We have a recommendation; we want their pressure-test. ### 5. Strategic Discussion 2: 2028 Plan Shape **Slide 10 — The choice** - Headline: "Healthcare aggression vs. breakeven discipline — pick the right point on the curve" - Body: Three scenario shapes: hold (breakeven Q2 2028), push (breakeven Q4 2028), accelerate (breakeven 2029); ARR and burn implications - Speaker note: Frame the trade-off; reference the segment NRR data; ask each board member's gut on the right scenario. **Slide 11 — What changes by scenario** - Headline: "Hiring, GTM, and product mix shift meaningfully across scenarios" - Body: Side-by-side of hires, GTM spend, product roadmap commitments - Speaker note: Walk the differences slowly; this is the sub-decision that matters. ### 6. Strategic Discussion 3: M&A Scouting **Slide 12 — The CEO's ask** - Headline: "Begin structured M&A scouting in healthcare-adjacent analytics now, or wait one quarter?" - Body: Why now arguments; why wait arguments; what scouting actually means at this stage - Speaker note: Open question to the board; aim is not consensus today, just to hear each member's view. **Slide 13 — The landscape (high-level)** - Headline: "5 categories of adjacent assets, ranging from $5M to $50M ARR" - Body: Anonymized landscape; not a target list, just shape of the space - Speaker note: Names redacted intentionally; will share targets with the M&A subcommittee if formed. ### 7. Function Summary **Slide 14 — Function status (pre-read recap)** - Headline: "Function pre-reads: 4 green, 1 yellow (marketing leadership transition)" - Body: One-line status per function; flag where deeper discussion is warranted - Speaker note: 5 minutes max; full detail in pre-read. ### 8. Customer Voice **Slide 15 — The win** - Headline: "Brookline Health: $1.2M, 5-year, won on compliance" - Body: Customer profile; deal arc; CIO quote; expansion runway - Speaker note: VP CS tells the story in 3 minutes — including what we almost got wrong. **Slide 16 — The loss** - Headline: "Greentree Medical: $400K renewal lost to parent-co procurement consolidation" - Body: Timeline; what we tried; what we learned about acquired-customer risk - Speaker note: We saw this 60 days out and had no good play. This is a learning, not a panic. ### 9. People **Slide 17 — Hiring & departures** - Headline: "Net +5 in Q1; 2 critical roles still open (CMO, healthcare-specialist AE Lead)" - Body: Hires by function; departures; open roles with timeline - Speaker note: Flag the CMO search status; ask for board introductions. ### 10. Financials **Slide 18 — Q1 actuals vs. plan** - Headline: "Revenue 105% of plan, gross margin 73% (target 75%), opex on plan" - Body: P&L summary table - Speaker note: Margin gap is the AI module ramp; will recover through Q2. **Slide 19 — Full-year reforecast** - Headline: "Reforecast: $48M ARR (vs. $42M plan), breakeven Q4 still in reach" - Body: Reforecast table; deltas to plan; assumption changes - Speaker note: Conservative reforecast; the upside case is more aggressive. **Slide 20 — Cash scenarios** - Headline: "Three scenarios — all default-alive through end of 2028" - Body: Hold, push, accelerate scenarios with cash trajectories - Speaker note: Maps to the 2028 plan-shape discussion. ### 11. Risks **Slide 21 — Top risks we are watching** - Headline: "Five risks, each with the early-warning signal" - Body: - Helio enterprise climb (signal: their hiring page) - Healthcare compliance changes (signal: HHS guidance) - Customer-base M&A (signal: deal news in top-50 accounts) - Engineering retention (signal: monthly retention scorecard) - AI module commercial soft-landing (signal: Q2 paying-user trajectory) - Speaker note: Walk through quickly; flag any board has heard signal on. ### 12. Approvals **Slide 22 — Series C ratification** - Headline: "Ratify Series C close terms" - Body: Round size, lead, terms summary, board representation changes - Speaker note: Formal vote. **Slide 23 — CRO equity grant** - Headline: "Approve equity grant: Mateo Ferreira, CRO" - Body: Grant amount, vesting, comparator data - Speaker note: Compensation committee recommendation; formal vote. **Slide 24 — CPO ratification** - Headline: "Ratify Sandeep Kumar's promotion to CPO" - Body: Scope, comp adjustment, board notification - Speaker note: Already announced internally April 1; formal ratification. ### 13. Executive Session **Slide 25 — Executive Session** - Headline: "Executive Session — Board Only" - Body: (Blank) - Speaker note: Management departs; independent chair leads. ### 14. Appendix **Slide 26+ — Appendix** - Detailed financials by month - Cohort retention tables - Sales pipeline by segment - Engineering velocity metrics - Customer health scorecard - Hiring funnel data Total: 25 main slides + appendix. Within the 30-slide cap.
Tips for best results
- 1Headlines must state the takeaway, not the topic. 'Customer Update' is wrong; 'Healthcare NRR at 138%' is right.
- 2Strategic discussion slides should outnumber status slides 2-to-1. Boards have a dashboard for status.
- 3If you can't write a speaker note for a slide, the slide should be cut. Slides without spoken context just get screenshot.
- 4Build the appendix with detail backup — boards will ask, and a clean appendix saves an unprepared moment.
- 5Send the deck 72 hours before the meeting, not 12 hours. The deck that arrives Sunday for a Wednesday meeting is the one that gets read.
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