7DEC
7 - 11 Dec 2026Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
Professional training course · CWS-023
Executive Summary and Briefing Note Writing
Senior leaders read under constant time pressure. They need to grasp an issue, its implications and the decision required within a minute or two, often between meetings…
- 5 daysClassroom
- 49Upcoming dates
- 12Cities
- £2,250Fees from
Course overview
Introduction
Senior leaders read under constant time pressure. They need to grasp an issue, its implications and the decision required within a minute or two, often between meetings or on a mobile device. Executive summaries and briefing notes that bury the message, wander through background or fail to recommend a clear course of action waste that time and weaken the writer's credibility.
This Executive Summary and Briefing Note Writing training course teaches participants how to write concise, decision-focused documents that busy executives value. Participants learn how to identify the core message, structure content using the pyramid principle, write for different decision types, present options and risks objectively, and edit ruthlessly for brevity and clarity.
Through repeated drafting and feedback, participants build a reliable method they can apply to any summary, briefing or cover note.
Course Objectives
By the end of this training course, participants will be able to:
- Explain what senior readers need from summaries and briefings
- Identify the core message and purpose before writing
- Structure documents using the pyramid principle and top-down logic
- Write clear issue statements, options and recommendations
- Present risks, costs and implications objectively and concisely
- Adapt briefings for information, decision and urgent action
- Edit drafts to remove unnecessary words and complexity
- Use layout and formatting to make documents easy to scan
Target Audience
This training course is suitable for a wide range of professionals, including:
- Managers and team leaders who brief senior executives
- Policy officers and analysts
- Executive assistants and chiefs of staff
- Project and programme managers
- Consultants and advisers
- Government and public sector officials
Training Methodology
The course is practical and writing-intensive. Participants analyse good and poor examples, then draft summaries and briefing notes from realistic source material, receiving individual feedback from the trainer and peers. Each day builds on the previous one, so participants see measurable improvement in their writing.
Target Competencies
- Core message identification
- Top-down document structure
- Concise recommendation writing
- Objective presentation of options
- Ruthless editing
- Scannable layout design
Course outline
-
1Day One: Writing for Senior Readers
- How executives read and what they look for first
- Common reasons summaries and briefings fail
- Defining purpose, audience and the decision required
- Finding the single core message before drafting
- Differences between summaries, briefing notes and cover papers
- Tone and credibility in writing for senior leaders
- Exercise: diagnosing weaknesses in sample briefings
-
2Day Two: Structuring the Message
- The pyramid principle and putting the answer first
- Grouping supporting points logically and consistently
- Situation, complication and resolution as an opening structure
- Writing headings that carry the message
- Deciding what to leave out or move to annexes
- Building a one-page summary from a long report
- Workshop: restructuring a long document into a summary
-
3Day Three: Options, Recommendations and Risks
- Writing a clear and neutral issue statement
- Presenting options with balanced pros and cons
- Making a firm, well-justified recommendation
- Summarising financial, legal and reputational implications
- Presenting risks and mitigations in plain language
- Stating next steps, owners and deadlines clearly
- Exercise: drafting a decision briefing note
-
4Day Four: Concise and Clear Language
- Writing short sentences and active constructions
- Removing jargon, filler and unnecessary qualifiers
- Choosing precise words over vague expressions
- Presenting numbers and evidence clearly in text
- Using bullet points and tables without losing meaning
- Editing techniques to cut length by a third
- Workshop: editing drafts for brevity and clarity
-
5Day Five: Special Situations and Final Practice
- Urgent briefings and situation updates during incidents
- Briefing notes for meetings, visits and speeches
- Writing summaries for mobile and email reading
- Handling sensitive or bad news in briefings
- Quality checking before sending to executives
- Final writing assessment with individual feedback
- Personal action plan for executive writing
Schedule
Dates and fees
49 upcoming dates in 12 cities. Fees are per delegate; bring colleagues and every seat is discounted.
December 2026
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
14DEC
14 - 18 Dec 2026Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
21DEC
21 - 25 Dec 2026Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
January 2027
4JAN
4 - 8 Jan 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
11JAN
11 - 15 Jan 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
18JAN
18 - 22 Jan 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
25JAN
25 - 29 Jan 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
IstanbulTurkey · Classroom
£2,850per delegate2+ people: £2,280 each
February 2027
1FEB
1 - 5 Feb 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
Kuala LumpurMalaysia · Classroom
£2,250per delegate2+ people: £1,800 each
8FEB
8 - 12 Feb 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
15FEB
15 - 19 Feb 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
22FEB
22 - 26 Feb 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
March 2027
1MAR
1 - 5 Mar 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
8MAR
8 - 12 Mar 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
MadridSpain · Classroom
£4,250per delegate2+ people: £3,400 each
15MAR
15 - 19 Mar 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
22MAR
22 - 26 Mar 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
April 2027
5APR
5 - 9 Apr 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
12APR
12 - 16 Apr 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
19APR
19 - 23 Apr 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
MunichGermany · Classroom
£4,250per delegate2+ people: £3,400 each
26APR
26 - 30 Apr 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
May 2027
3MAY
3 - 7 May 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
10MAY
10 - 14 May 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
17MAY
17 - 21 May 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
24MAY
24 - 28 May 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
ParisFrance · Classroom
£4,500per delegate2+ people: £3,600 each
June 2027
7JUN
7 - 11 Jun 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
14JUN
14 - 18 Jun 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
21JUN
21 - 25 Jun 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
July 2027
5JUL
5 - 9 Jul 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
12JUL
12 - 16 Jul 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
ViennaAustria · Classroom
£4,250per delegate2+ people: £3,400 each
19JUL
19 - 23 Jul 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
26JUL
26 - 30 Jul 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
August 2027
2AUG
2 - 6 Aug 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
9AUG
9 - 13 Aug 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
16AUG
16 - 20 Aug 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
AmsterdamNetherlands · Classroom
£4,250per delegate2+ people: £3,400 each
23AUG
23 - 27 Aug 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
September 2027
6SEP
6 - 10 Sep 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
13SEP
13 - 17 Sep 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
20SEP
20 - 24 Sep 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
October 2027
4OCT
4 - 8 Oct 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
DubaiUnited Arab Emirates · Classroom
£5,250per delegate2+ people: £4,200 each
11OCT
11 - 15 Oct 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
18OCT
18 - 22 Oct 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
25OCT
25 - 29 Oct 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
November 2027
1NOV
1 - 5 Nov 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
8NOV
8 - 12 Nov 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
GenevaSwitzerland · Classroom
£5,250per delegate2+ people: £4,200 each
15NOV
15 - 19 Nov 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
22NOV
22 - 26 Nov 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
December 2027
6DEC
6 - 10 Dec 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
BarcelonaSpain · Classroom
£3,850per delegate2+ people: £3,080 each
13DEC
13 - 17 Dec 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
FrankfurtGermany · Classroom
£3,250per delegate2+ people: £2,600 each
20DEC
20 - 24 Dec 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
IstanbulTurkey · Classroom
£2,850per delegate2+ people: £2,280 each
27DEC
27 - 31 Dec 2027Mon to Fri · 5 days
LondonUnited Kingdom · Classroom
£4,200per delegate2+ people: £3,360 each
No dates in this city right now. Request a quotation and we will suggest the nearest date.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
How long is the Executive Summary and Briefing Note Writing course?
The course runs over 5 days of classroom training, usually Monday to Friday.
When is the next Executive Summary and Briefing Note Writing course?
The next public date is 7 - 11 Dec 2026 in Frankfurt. There are 49 upcoming dates in total.
Where is this course held?
Upcoming sessions run in Frankfurt, London, Barcelona, Istanbul, Kuala Lumpur, Madrid, Munich, Paris, Vienna, Amsterdam, Dubai, Geneva.
How much does the course cost?
Fees start from £2,250 per delegate, depending on the city. Fees include tuition and course materials.
Do participants receive a certificate?
Yes. Delegates who complete the course receive a London Leadership Management Innovation certificate of completion.
Can this course be delivered in-house for our team?
Yes. LLMI can tailor and deliver this course privately for your organisation at your premises or in one of our training cities.
Course information last updated 14 November 2026.
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