One of my tasks this weekend was to put together an executive summary for CTS, the startup just crazy enough to give me a CTO position. While I’ve spent a fair bit of time either hanging out with or working at startups, I’ve never had to write such a summary. I decided to see what online resources there were, and there are many, including some good ones such as The Art of the Executive Summary by Guy Kawasaki, local hero Ken Seto’s 5 Steps to an Awesome Executive Summary, and Marco “The Angel Pitch Guy” Messina’s executive summary template. ]
What proved to be incredibly useful is the video above created by the people behind the “surviving a startup” site Working for Wonka. This video is the last of their “How to Write a Business Plan” series; while the executive summary is the first thing in a business plan, it should be the last part you write. They use the amusing example of Tom and Jerry Inc. and their better mousetrap to illustrate the plan’s various parts of the plan, and the series was both entertaining and helpful. If you’re looking for a guide on writing executive summaries or the entire business plan for your startup, the Working for Wonka videos are a great place to start.