How to Write a Board Report – 11 Top Tips for Writing Great Board Reports

How do you write an effective board report?  What makes a board report work with directors? What board report writing mistakes should you avoid? How to write a board report that works.

Meet the Author: Steve Jacobs
Steve is a partner at Benjamin Ball Associates, leads the writing team and is an outstanding coach and trainer. Steve has more than 25 years’ experience in corporate and financial public relations. He was a founding partner of the strategic comms division of FTI and more recently was head of comms and IR at Breedon Group plc.  Follow Steve on LinkedIn or visit the contact page. 

Why good board report writing is so important

When you give your report to the board, your aim is simple: to get them to make a decision or back your proposal.  But how do you make it easy for them?  How can you use your report writing skills to ensure you’ll achieve your objective?

Writing a comprehensive board report is a critical skill for any senior executive. The purpose of your board report is to provide your board with the relevant and critical information that they need to make informed strategic decisions.

What board members expect from your report

Board members are busy.  They have a wide range of subjects to deal with and they need to prioritise. That means your report must be easy to digest.  You should imagine it being read on a train or at home between putting the kids to bed and dinner.  Have you made it easy for your readers?  Have you avoided the most common mistakes?  

Obviously, this means your report must be more than a data dump; it’s a strategic communication tool that states your recommendations clearly. A well-crafted report helps the board to understand what you are proposing and why it is important. It helps them make the right decisions.

Mastering the art of writing a board report: A guide for senior executives

So, what is the best way to structure this essential document? Best practices in board reporting suggest starting with a powerful CEO report or executive summary. This section should give a high-level overview, clearly stating recommendations, honestly addressing challenges, and framing the discussion for the meeting.

From there, dive into the core components: whether that’s a review of financial reports, new initiatives or key performance indicators (KPIs). Your most important information must be at the start of your report.

What are common mistakes when writing board reports?

During our team’s 15+ years helping people write better board reports, we’ve repeatedly seen the following mistakes:

• Not getting to the point
• Death by PowerPoint
• Too much detail
• Unclear recommendations
• Ugly documents that are hard to read
• Failing to address what most interests the board

The art of writing a good report is a core management skill and one that you need to master.  We can help you do that through our intensive masterclasses and coaching sessions.

What can you do to write better board reports?

We’ve supported management teams to write better board reports for over 15 years.  If you’d like to discuss our fast, effective training programmes, get in touch today.

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1. Lead with the Bottom Line (BLUF)

Top tip: Bottom Line Up Front: start with a concise executive summary that delivers your key message, recommendations and required actions upfront.

Why it’s important: board members are time-poor and interested in what will make a difference.  They need to grasp the essence of the issue immediately.  Don’t make them hunt for the “so what?”  Burying the lead risks them missing your core point or, worse, misunderstanding the situation.  Structure the entire report to support this initial conclusion.

Weak start
“We have conducted extensive research and determined that there are various issues we need to deal with.”
Strong start
“We recommend improving customer experience by investing £0.5m in a new software platform.  This will deliver the following benefits….”

2. Write for scanners, not just readers

Top tip: use a clear, scannable structure with informative headings, bullet points, bold key terms and white space.

Why it’s important: many board members will skim the report first.  A dense, monolithic block of text is intimidating and inefficient.  Visual signposts allow them to quickly navigate to the sections most relevant to them, understand the flow of your argument and absorb information efficiently.

Poor Structure
A large block of text that contains a lot of information but is hard to read and forces the reader to read everything.

Good Structure
Clear headlines.
Easy to scan.
Shouts the message from quickly scanned headlines.

3. Talk about strategic impact, not operational detail

Top tip: filter every piece of information through a strategic lens. Ask: “Why does this matter to the board’s governance, risk, and strategy duties?”  Cut detail that belongs in an appendix or operational review.

Why it’s important: the board’s role is governance and long-term strategy.  They trust you to run the operations.  Flooding them with granular data dilutes your key messages and wastes their limited attention.  Show them the forest, not every tree.

Weak writing
“By deploying the new AI-3457J code in base system sub-routines and then transitioning to version 32.45 of the operating system, we’ll reduce lag in the central bus and optimise the SE-54 frameworks.”

Strong Writing
“These software changes will reduce the risk of hacking and increase system up-time.”  

4. Be objective and data-driven

Top tip: back up your assertions with data, evidence and objective analysis.  Clearly separate fact from opinion.  Use charts and graphs to visualise data, but make sure they’re simple and clearly labelled.

Why it’s important: credibility is your most important currency.  Board members need to trust that the information you provide is accurate.  Data provide an objective foundation for discussion and decision-making, moving the conversation from “I feel” to “The evidence shows.”

Weak writing
“We think sales will increase and customer service will be improved with these changes.”

Strong Writing
“This change should increase sales by 10% and increase our customer satisfaction score by 15% within six months.”

5. Clearly state risks and mitigations

Top tip: identify and assess the risks associated with your proposal or update.  Don’t hide challenges; demonstrate foresight by presenting a clear plan to mitigate them.

Why it’s important: the board’s job is to oversee risk.  So, discuss risks to build trust.  This will help disarm objections.

Weak writing
No discussion of objections.

Strong Writing
“While some people remain sceptical about on-shoring our manufacturing, our research shows that this will cut costs by 5%, reduce lead times by two weeks and increase customer satisfaction.”  

6. Define the Ask explicitly

Top tip: be crystal clear about what you’re asking the board to do.  Is it a decision, an endorsement, or simply “for noting”?  State the required action clearly.

Why it’s important: ambiguity leads to inaction or misalignment.  A clear ‘ask’ focuses the board’s discussion, streamlines the decision-making process and ensures there’s no confusion about the outcome you need from them.

Weak writing
“The background to this request is a concern by various team members that the systems we are using are not optimised, so we conducted a thorough analysis of our operations compared to market best practice.”

Strong writing
“We propose investing £200k on upgrading the customer service system to ensure 99.9% availability, matching industry best practice.”  

7. Maintain a confident, concise tone

Top tip: use strong, active language and avoid hedging, jargon, and corporate buzzwords. Be direct and authoritative.

Why it’s important: your language reflects your leadership.  Wordy, hesitant or jargon-filled prose will undermine confidence in your command of the subject.  Be concise and clear.

Weak writing
“Subject to further research, we believe there are possible opportunities to reduce costs through a process of system optimisation and focusing on process improvements.”

Strong writing
“With this two-week study, we aim to identify potential cost reductions of up to £50k per week.”  

8. Anticipate questions and pre-empt them

Top tip: think like a board member when writing board reports.  What questions would you have?  Address the obvious ones within the report itself, especially potential objections or alternative viewpoints.

Why it’s important: Better board report writing demonstrates thorough preparation and strategic thinking.  It short-circuits basic clarifying questions during the meeting, allowing the discussion to focus on higher-level strategic debate rather than filling in information gaps.

Weak approach
Ignore objections and questions.

Strong approach
“We understand that some people are sceptical about this change.  Some question whether the technology is tested and whether it is right for our business.  Our analysis shows that this is the right approach, and here is why.”

9. Use the ‘active voice’

Top tip: structure sentences so the subject performs the action (active), not receives it (passive).

Why it’s important: the passive voice can obscure responsibility and feel evasive, which undermines trust.  The active voice is stronger, more direct and uses fewer words.  It creates accountability by making it clear who did what.

Passive voice
“A study was commissioned.”

Active Voice
“We commissioned a study.”

10. Eliminate weasel words and hedging language

Top tip: avoid qualifiers that weaken your conviction, such as “I think,” “we believe,” “it might be possible,” “somewhat,” “generally” and “virtually.”  State facts and recommendations with confidence in your board report writing.

Why it’s important: the board relies on you for definitive advice and analysis. Hedging language sounds uncertain and can seed doubt.  State your case based on the evidence you have.

Weak writing
“We believe this strategy could potentially drive growth.”

Strong writing
“This strategy will drive growth” or “This strategy is projected to drive 5% growth.”

11. KISS, KYSS

Top tip: brevity is a superpower.  Keep it Short and Simple.  Keep Your Sentences Short.  

Why it’s important: board members have limited time.  Board agendas are packed. It’s your job to make it easy for them.  That means you need to do the hard work so it’s easy for them to understand.  Sharp board report writing demonstrates sharp thinking.

Weak approach
“In this 50-page report we lay out the various options open to the board and the pros and cons of each.”

Strong approach
“We recommend keeping the current system running for at least another two years and reassess at that time.  This will defer capex and reduce the need for outside consultants.  Our analysis shows that the risks are minimal.”  

Putting it all together: a Before and After example

See how better board report writing makes a big difference.

Weak (passive, wordy, vague):
“It is believed by the leadership team that a strategic pivot might be necessary due to the fact that market conditions have been somewhat volatile.  It is recommended that we should consider the possibility of reallocating resources in a very quick fashion to better areas of opportunity.”

Strong (active, concise, specific):
“Volatile market conditions necessitate a strategic pivot.  We recommend reallocating £2m from Project Alpha to Project Beta before Q4 to capture this higher-growth opportunity.”

NB: The second version is shorter, more confident and provides the board with a clear, actionable recommendation grounded in specific data.  This is the standard that earns trust and drives decisions.

What next for better board report writing?

If you’d like to improve your board reports and get better board report writing skills in your team, get in touch. Whether a small-group coaching session, or a larger masterclass, we can help build skills in your team.

Speak to Louise Angus, our client services director today.

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