# Turn a raw spreadsheet into a management-ready report with an executive summary

Converts raw spreadsheet data into a clear report for managers: executive summary, key numbers, tables, and recommended actions.

- Topic: Data & Analysis
- Framework: Few-Shot
- Level: Advanced
- Tags: Data & Analytics, Leadership, Summarize, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/turn-a-raw-spreadsheet-into-a-management-ready-report-with-an

## Prompt

```text
Turn my raw spreadsheet data into a report my management team can read in five minutes.

**Data:** [PASTE the table or summary numbers, or upload the file]
**Level of detail:** [one row per transaction / per customer / per month - or already summarized]
**What the report covers:** [e.g. "Q3 sales by region", "monthly operations KPIs", "training completion"]
**Audience and what they will decide:** [e.g. "leadership team deciding where to add headcount"]
**Comparisons available:** [target, budget, prior period, prior year]
**Context the numbers don't show:** [events, changes, known issues]

First, check the data: totals that don't add up, missing periods, blanks, and anything that looks like an error. List these before writing.

If the data is row-level, summarize it before writing: state the aggregations you used (e.g. revenue by month and region, count of orders by status) and the pivot table or SUMIFS setup to reproduce each one in Excel, so I can verify the numbers.

Then produce:
1. **Executive summary** (3-5 bullets): the answer first - what happened, how it compares, why it matters, and what needs a decision. Each bullet contains a number.
2. **Headline numbers:** 4-6 KPIs in a table: Metric | This period | Comparison | Change | Status.
3. **What's driving the result:** the 2-3 biggest movements, broken down by segment, with the numbers.
4. **Watch list:** risks or emerging issues.
5. **Recommended actions or decisions needed**, each with an owner [ADD] and date [ADD].
6. **Summary tables** cleaned up for the report: fewer columns, rounded numbers, sorted by importance.
7. **Notes and caveats** on data limits.

Rules: use only numbers in my data and show how any calculated figure was derived. Separate what the data shows from possible explanations - label explanations as hypotheses unless I gave the cause. No jargon; write for someone who has not seen the spreadsheet.
```

## What to fill in

- PASTE the table or summary numbers, or upload the file
- e.g. "leadership team deciding where to add headcount"
- target, budget, prior period, prior year
- events, changes, known issues
- ADD

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.