One page max for exec summary. Hit the big numbers up front - total savings, percentage of their annual bill, payback period. Details go in appendix.
Executive Summary Best Practices - Keep It Short!
Agree with Steven. I use bullet points heavily. First bullet is always the total dollar impact. Had a Duke Energy audit last month - led with "Annual savings opportunity: $23,400" and the rest practically sold itself.
Don't forget the "what if we do nothing" angle. I always include a line like "Over 5 years, these billing errors will cost approximately $235,000 if uncorrected." Gets their attention.
Jennifer, what's the breakdown of that $47k? Demand charges, power factor penalties, or tariff misclassification? Might help structure your summary better.
Good question Meredith. $28k was incorrect demand billing (they were on Schedule 19 but should have been on Schedule 46), $12k power factor penalties that could be avoided with capacitors, $7k in meter reading errors. Mix of utility mistakes and operational fixes.
Perfect - lead with the tariff issue since that's pure gravy, then the operational stuff. CFOs love the easy money first, shows immediate ROI on your audit fee.
One more tip - include a simple timeline. "Month 1: File tariff change request. Month 2: Install power factor correction. Month 3: Begin realizing full savings." Executives love actionable timelines.
Working on a big presentation for a manufacturing client - found $47k in billing errors over 18 months. My executive summary is running 3 pages though. What's your rule of thumb for length? CFO types don't want to read War and Peace.