Decision-ready beats presentation-ready
A framework for turning complex inputs into choices stakeholders can act on.
Most consulting deliverables are built to impress, not to decide. They’re comprehensive, polished, and structurally designed to delay commitment. The deck gets longer. The options multiply. The audience nods, then schedules another meeting.
The problem with presentation-ready
Presentation-ready artifacts optimize for one thing: looking thorough. They cover every angle, hedge every claim, and leave just enough ambiguity that no one in the room feels cornered into a decision.
This is by design. Comprehensive decks are safe. They signal diligence. But they don’t move organizations forward.
What decision-ready looks like
A decision-ready artifact is different. It:
- Names the decision explicitly. Not the topic, not the area of concern—the actual fork in the road.
- Limits the options to the two or three that are genuinely viable. Not five. Not “it depends.”
- States the trade-offs in terms the decision-maker cares about: cost, time, risk, reversibility.
- Assigns ownership so the next step is clear before the meeting ends.
How to get there
Start by asking: “What decision does this work need to support?” If you can’t answer that in one sentence, you’re not ready to build the artifact yet.
Then work backwards. What does the decision-maker need to see to choose confidently? That’s your scope. Everything else is noise.
The shift from presentation-ready to decision-ready isn’t about doing less work. It’s about doing the right work—and having the courage to present a clear recommendation instead of hiding behind comprehensiveness.