Vic Sol · Decision DeskEditable template · 20 min to use
One-page decision memo: context, options, the ask
For the manager who needs a yes or no from the committee and knows another thirty-slide deck will only buy another meeting.
When to use it
You need approval for an AI purchase, pilot or pause and the committee meets once a month.
You have presented twice already and the conclusion was "let's keep analysing".
Someone asked you to "send me something short" and what you have is a report.
The sheet
#
Section
What to write
Length
1
Title
Name the decision, not the topic. "Approve X by date Y", not "AI update".
10 words
2
Context
How things stand today. Facts and baseline figures only.
3–4 sentences
3
Complication
What changed, or what is lost if we do not decide. With the number that makes it urgent.
2–3 sentences
4
Options
2 or 3 mutually exclusive options, each with a name, one line and its main cost or risk. No preference.
1–2 lines each
5
Recommendation
The chosen option and the data point that tips the balance.
1 short paragraph
6
Risks and mitigation
The 3 the committee will ask about, with a one-line answer each.
3 bullets
7
The ask
Yes or no, who executes and by when. Never "discuss next steps".
1 line
Total: about 400 words. If it does not fit, cut from the context, not from the ask.
Illustrative example (fictional company and figures)
Title: Approve AI pilot for quotes by 15 November. Context: Sales issues 600 quotes a month with a 3-day average response; two people review each one. Complication: Our main client asked for 24-hour responses from January. Today we meet that deadline on 1 in 5 quotes. Options: (A) Hire a third reviewer: solves volume, not speed. (B) AI pilot with human review on 20% of quotes: 8 weeks, one vendor. (C) Wait for the new sales system: arrives in June. Recommendation: B. The only option that tests speed before January and can be cancelled in week 4. Risks: pricing error → the reviewer signs every pilot quote; client data → non-personal fields only; low adoption → a named rep takes part from day 1. Ask: Approve the pilot today. Marta (sales) leads it; results report on 20 January.
How to fill it in 20 minutes
Write the ask first (row 7). If it does not fit in one line, you do not yet know what you are asking for.
Write the title from the ask.
Fill context and complication only with figures you can stand behind if asked where they came from.
Every option must be defensible. If one is clearly bad, it is filler, not an option.
Put down the three risks that would genuinely make you hesitate, not the easiest to mitigate.
The most common mistake: hiding the recommendation inside the options. The reader notices the bias and distrusts the rest.
The line that is almost always missing
The number in the complication. Without it, the memo says "this matters" and the committee replies "yes, but not now". With it, the committee has to say why not.
Vic Sol · Decision Desk · vicsol.org/resources/ · Free to use with attribution. This sheet structures a conversation; it is not legal, financial or audit advice.
Open the .docx in Word (or the .xlsx in Excel) or print it before the meeting.
Fill the fields with the team; leave the blanks visible, they are the discussion.
Close with one owner, one date and one next action. Nothing else.
Prompt
Generate this sheet for your case
Paste this prompt into ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini together with your proposal, process or policy. It reproduces the sheet with your data and flags what is missing.
Act as a general manager with experience on the executive committees of mid-sized companies, who has read hundreds of memos and only approves the ones that end in a clear ask with an owner and a date.
Context I am giving you:
- Company and area: [e.g. logistics company, 250 people, operations]
- Decision I need from the committee: [one sentence]
- Deadline and why that date: [ ]
- Current situation with figures: [volume, time, cost, whatever you have]
- What changed, or what is lost if we do not decide: [ ]
- The 2 or 3 real options I see: [ ]
- My recommendation and the data point that convinces me: [ ]
- Supporting material: [paste report, notes or deck, or write "none"]
What I need: write a one-page decision memo with exactly these seven sections, in this order:
1. Title that names the decision and the date (maximum 10 words).
2. Context: 3–4 sentences, facts only.
3. Complication: 2–3 sentences with the number that makes deciding urgent.
4. Options: 2 or 3, mutually exclusive, each with a name, one line and its main cost or risk. No preference.
5. Recommendation: the chosen option and the data point behind it.
6. Risks and mitigation: the 3 the committee will ask about, each with a one-line answer.
7. The ask: yes or no, who executes and by when.
Output format: running text with the seven headings in bold. Maximum 400 words. No introduction or closing.
Rules:
- Do not invent figures. Where data is missing, write [DATA PENDING] and tell me how to get it.
- Mark every assumption as an assumption.
- Remove adjectives that carry no data ("significant", "important", "key").
- If one option is clearly worse than the others, tell me: it is probably filler.
- If critical information is missing, ask me at most 3 questions before answering.
- Answer in plain, direct business English, with no sales adjectives.
What to check in the answer:
Does the complication have a number, or did it slide back to "the situation is concerning"?
Are the options written without bias, or did the recommendation leak into section 4?
Can the ask be answered yes or no from the memo alone, without another meeting? If not, ask it to rewrite section 7 only.
Vic Sol