Note 1: Each slide shows instructions in yellow boxes.

Remove
them once you’ve followed them!

Example Explanation

How to make it work

• Clarify criteria + remove any
overlaps
• Include all criteria that key
stakeholders consider
important

1
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Note 2: DON’T GIVE TITLES TO YOUR SLIDES! Instead,
use an assertion-evidence structure
How to make it work
• Use the assertion, in the tagline,
to summarize the “so what?” of
The tagline shows the the slide

slide’s idea—the • Use the evidence, in the body of

the slide, to support the
assertion assertion
• Write the assertions as full
declarative sentences—not just
titles
• Make all assertions
understandable without having
to read the evidence. Reading
The body of the slide, the assertions without looking
at any of the body of the slides
shows the support should be sufficient to
understand the presentation
for the assertion— • Make the assertions of your
the evidence slides work together to tell
your story
• Use as little text in the body of
slides as possible. Instead make
evidence, using photos, drawings,
graphs, etc.

See more on the assertion-

evidence structure in Strategic
Thinking in Complex Problem Solving,
pp. 176–180

2
Copyright © Chevallier 2008–2022. All rights reserved
Sample report:
Increasing FrED Com
Ltd.’s sales
Author(s): Harry

Copyright © 2022 IMD. All rights reserved.

To increase FrED Com Ltd.’s sales by 10% annually over the next 5
years, we recommend expanding the current sales team
• FrED Com Ltd. provides marketing services to the US healthcare industry; its
revenues have been constant for the last 5 years. I am the CEO How to make it work
• Make your first slide your
• I want to increase FrED Com Ltd.’s revenues by 10% annually over the next 5 executive summary. Tell
years your audience what you’ll
tell them in the
• However, FrED Com Ltd.’s current sales force doesn't have enough people presentation
• Make it self contained:
• To increase FrED Com Ltd.’s revenues by 10% annually over the next 5 years, The audience shouldn’t
need anything else to
we should expand our current team understand it
• Include your final
• Rationale: conclusion and its
support
• To increase our sales, we can either -1- expand the current team, -2- • Writ this slides last.
develop their skills, or -3- acquire a competitor Wait until after you’ve
crafted the presentation
• The alternative we’ll choose must balance a potential to increase sales with and you know what you’ll
say
implementation ease, low risk, and cultural fit
• Expanding the current team isn’t perfect but, overall, offers the best
tradeoffs
FrED Com Ltd. provides marketing services to the US healthcare industry;
its revenues have been constant for the last 5 years. I am the CEO
Hero

Annual sales (M US$) How to make it work

• Specify the hero and the
hero’s context

CAGR: 0 % • Only include info that is

not controversial for your
audience

Slide design:
• Articulate a clear
assertion in the tagline
that summarizes the “so
what?” of the slide
• Use the body of the slide
42.9 43.1 to support the assertion
40.5 42.2 39.5 with strong, visual
evidence

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

5
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 I want to increase FrED Com Ltd.’s revenues by 10% annually over
the next 5 years
Treasure

• Demand is increasing for our types of How to make it work

products throughout the US • Specify the treasure
There is market • Support it – explain why
potential it’s a good treasure
• One of our main competitors has gone
R.I.P. out of business

Feasible
• We introduced new features during the
Increasing Our product is last 2 years
our sales by getting more • The good R&D results of the last 3 years
10% is … unique will feed into our product pipeline within
6 months

Needed
The market is 1 • The US market is consolidating; either
becoming a winner 2 we become top 2 or we’re driven out
takes all one

6
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 However, FrED Com Ltd.’s current sales force doesn't have enough
people
Dragon

How to make it work

Our sales forces has been highly
efficient …
# of clients per sales person FTE
… and we lost some sales ➜ Our current sales doesn’t • Specify the dragon
agents during the last 5 years… have enough people • Provide compelling
evidence! Don’t make
your audience just believe
# of sales agents # of sales agents your claim

4 8 12 18 25
4.1 50
3.7 45 43 42 40 38 36 34 32 30

XYZ Industry avg 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

Additional needed
Expected sales force

7
Copyright © Chevallier 2008–2022. All rights reserved
How can I increase FrED Com Ltd.’s revenues by 10% annually over the next 5
years, given that FrED Com Ltd.’s current sales force doesn't have enough people?
Quest

How to make it work

Annual sales (M US$) • Summarize the problem

in one—and only one—
quest that integrates the
hero, treasure, and dragon
CAGR: 10 %
• Everything so far should
be noncontroversial–you
want to build common
CAGR: 0 % ground with your
audience.You should aim
to make them nod in
agreement with your
69.4 claim
63.1
57.4
47.4 52.1
42.9 40.5 42.2 39.5 43.1

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Actual Targeted

8
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 To increase our sales, we can either -1- expand the current team,
-2-develop their skills, or -3- acquire a competitor
Alternatives

How to make it work

• Only show the
alternatives that should
Expand the Hire 5 or more sales agents per be discussed; put the
others in appendix
current team year • Describe alternatives so
that the audience
understands their
implications

Re-organize the current team, up- Continue to optimize

Develop the skilling them and implementing your slide design!

team’s skills processes that will support the • Articulate a clear

assertion in the tagline
sharing of best practices that summarizes the “so
what?” of the slide
• In the body of the slide,
support the assertion
using strong, visual
Acquire a Buy one of our major competitors evidence

competitor whose sales force we can leverage

9
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Our solution must balance a potential to increase sales with
implementation ease, low risk, and cultural fit
Criteria

How to make it work

How much this • Clearly articulate the

alternative can help Ease of tradeoffs by surfacing the

decision criteria
achieve sales target implementing the • Make the set of criteria
alternative Lack of risk as we MECE and insightful
implement the Alignment with
alternative our culture and
Potential to values
Implementation
increase sales ease Low risk Cultural fit

10
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Expanding the current team isn’t perfect but, overall, offers
manageable tradeoffs
Decision
Potential to Implementation
Low risk Cultural fit
increase sales ease How to make it work
• Explain why your alternative
of choice is good and its
• Not enough sales agents is what has limitations—it cannot have
only positives
prevented us from getting more of the
untapped market potential in the US • Be ready to support your
claims with valid reasoning
and strong evidence
• We can effectively integrate 5 – 10
• Also prepare:
new agents per year in our
1. Slides showing the analysis
operation that led you to these
conclusions. Have them in
the appendix, ready if you
need to justify your claims
• This alternative doesn’t create 2. A similar summary slide—
and support slides—for
unmanageable regulatory, legal, each top alternatives
and reputational risks 3. The decision matrix that
led you to conclude that
your alternative is best on
balance
• Integrating many new agents quickly resulted in
• Depending on the pushback
problems in the past. To get better results this you expect, decide which of
time, we need to not create a dual culture these slides to show, and
system (“us vs. them”) which to keep as backup

11
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 Your final deliverable should include a recommendation, your
confidence level, and ideas for implementation
Implementation
Criterion 1 Crit 2 Crit 3 Crit 4 Score Rank
How to make it work
0.1 0.3 0.5 0.1
• In addition to your
By pursuing 1 recommendation, quantify
50 75 100 0 80
[alternative 1]
your confidence level in it
How
By pursuing 25 25 75 25 51 4 ✘ ✔ and be ready to explain it
[alternative 2]
should we • Identify any key
…? … 100 100 25 100 61 3 5% 95% assumptions that still
15% 85% need testing
By pursuing 2
50 50 75 75 65
[alternative n] 25% 75% • Signal the weakest parts
35% 65% of your analysis
45% 55%
• Also provide broad
strokes for
implementation
• Explain how the client
Implementation plan should implement your
recommendation
Week 1 Week 2 … Week n-1 Week n
• Identify the indicators of
Step 1: … effectiveness (or lack
thereof!) of your
Step 2: … recommendation that
… the client should track at
various points and the
Step n: … course correction
options
12
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 To increase FrED Com Ltd.’s sales by 10% annually over the next 5
years, we recommend expanding the current sales team
• FrED Com Ltd. provides marketing services to the US healthcare industry; its
Executive summary

revenues have been constant for the last 5 years. I am the CEO How to make it work
• Copy-paste the executive
• I want to increase FrED Com Ltd.’s revenues by 10% annually over the next 5 summary slide that you
had at the beginning – tell
years your audience what you
have told them
• However, FrED Com Ltd.’s current sales force doesn't have enough people • Double check your work:
• To increase FrED Com Ltd.’s revenues by 10% annually over the next 5 years, – Be prepared to support
your claims with valid
we should expand our current team reasoning and strong
evidence
• Rationale: – Make taglines full
declarative sentences—
• To increase our sales, we can either -1- expand the current team, -2- not just titles—that are
develop their skills, or -3- acquire a competitor understandable without
having to read the
evidence
• The alternative we’ll choose must balance a potential to increase sales with – Use as little text in the
implementation ease, low risk, and cultural fit body of slides as
possible. Instead make
• Expanding the current team isn’t perfect but, overall, offers the best evidence, using photos,
drawings, graphs, etc.
tradeoffs
13
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Appendix

How to make it work

• Prepare an appendix with
the slides that will help
you answer your
audience’s questions
Expanding the current team has potential to increase sales

Decision
Potential to
increase sales How to make it work
• Be prepared to show the
analysis that led you to
• Not enough sales agents is what has your recommendation
prevented us from getting more of the Show evidence from your:
• Clearly show that your
untapped market potential in the US • Market research analysis relies on valid
• Focus groups reasoning and strong
evidence
• Post mortem of previous
growth efforts
• Benchmarks
•…

15
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Expanding the current team offers better tradeoffs than the other
alternatives

How to make it work

• Be prepared to explain
why your recommended
alternative is superior—
having the matrix ready
to display might help you
highlight tradeoffs

16
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We can achieve our sales growth target in various ways, which can be grouped as
expanding the current team, developing their skills, or acquiring a competitor

How to make it work

• Be prepared to
demonstrate that you
have considered all
relevant alternatives

17
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 18
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