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PART III: Building the Story

PART III: Building the Story

A strong case presentation should feel like one connected argument. The judges should never have to ask: "Why are they telling me this?" Every section should create a reason for the next one. You are not trying to entertain the judges with a traditional story. You are trying to guide them through a decision-making journey:

SITUATION → PROBLEM → INSIGHT → DECISION → ACTION → IMPACT

Part III focuses on two essential storytelling skills:

  1. Building a logical case story that gives the audience context, tension, and direction.

  2. Giving the audience the destination early through a clear executive summary.

The goal is simple: Make the presentation easy to follow and the recommendation easy to believe.

Chapter 5: A Presentation Is a Story with a Purpose

Video: Make Them Take Note: 7 Techniques to Deliver Presentations People Actually Remember

Video: Storytelling with the 5 P's: Build a Memorable Case Presentation

Video: Storytelling in Case Presentations: How to Build a Relatable, Memorable Story That Judges Remember

A case presentation is a story. But not in the traditional sense. You are not trying to entertain the judges for ten minutes. You are not writing a mystery. You are not trying to build suspense until the final slide. You are trying to help the audience understand:

  • where the organisation is now;

  • what has changed;

  • why that change matters;

  • what decision needs to be made;

  • what you recommend;

  • why the recommendation is credible;

  • how it will be executed;

  • and what it will accomplish.

That is the story.

The Case Story

A useful communication structure is:

  • Situation
    • What is happening?
    • Establish the context.
  • Complication
    • What has changed or created urgency?
    • Introduce the tension.
  • Question
    • What decision needs to be made?
    • Focus the audience.
  • Answer
    • What do we recommend?
    • Give the direction.

Then:

  • Proof
    • Why should you believe us?
    • Show the evidence, analysis, financial logic, and decision reasoning.
  • Execution
    • How will we make it happen?
    • Show implementation, ownership, timing, resources, and risk mitigation.
  • Impact
    • What will it accomplish?
    • Reconnect the recommendation to the organisation's objectives.

This creates a progression:

CONTEXT → TENSION → DECISION → ANSWER → PROOF → ACTION → VALUE

That is the communication version of the case-solving process.

Why Story Matters

Without a story, a case presentation can quickly become:

  • "Here's our customer analysis." Then:
  • "Here's our SWOT." Then:
  • "Here's our financial analysis." Then:
  • "Here are three alternatives." Then:
  • "Here's our recommendation."

Every section may be individually correct. But the audience has to reconstruct their relationship.

A stronger presentation sounds more like: "Customer retention has declined sharply among the company's most valuable customers. Our analysis shows that the problem is being driven primarily by a deteriorating customer experience rather than weak acquisition. That means increasing acquisition spending will not solve the root cause. We therefore evaluated three retention-focused alternatives..." Now the analysis is connected. Each idea creates the need for the next one.

SCQA

One of the most useful structures for creating this connection is SCQA:

SITUATION → COMPLICATION → QUESTION → ANSWER

Situation

Establish the context. Start with something the audience can accept relatively easily. For example: ACME has built a strong premium brand and experienced sustained growth over the past decade. The audience understands where the story begins.

Complication

Create the tension. Something has changed. For example: Over the past three years, Retention among ACME's highest-value customers has declined while acquisition costs have increased. Now the current situation is no longer sustainable. The complication creates a reason for action.

Question

Define the decision. Turn the tension into the problem management needs to solve. For example: How can ACME restore profitable growth without damaging the premium customer experience that differentiates the brand? Now the audience knows exactly what the presentation needs to answer.

Answer

Give the recommendation. For example, ACME should prioritise Retention through a targeted loyalty strategy that prioritises its highest-value customers. Now the audience knows where you are going. The rest of the presentation explains why they should believe you.

Don't Make It a Mystery

Teams sometimes believe that revealing the recommendation early reduces the drama of the presentation. That may be true. But drama is usually not the objective. Clarity is. Senior decision-makers frequently want the answer first. Then they want the supporting logic. Think:

  • ANSWER → WHY → HOW → IMPACT rather than:
  • ANALYSIS → ANALYSIS → ANALYSIS → SURPRISE!

Your judges should not spend eight minutes wondering what you are going to recommend. They should spend those eight minutes evaluating why the recommendation makes sense.

Storytelling Is About Connection

The storytelling videos associated with this chapter reinforce an important idea: a memorable presentation often includes a human or emotional connection. That connection might come from:

  • a customer;

  • an employee;

  • a stakeholder;

  • the organisation's mission;

  • a product;

  • a location;

  • an experience;

  • a consequence of the decision.

The purpose is not simply to make the presentation more emotional. The purpose is to give the audience something concrete to connect the strategic decision to. For example: "For ACME's most loyal customers, this is not simply a pricing decision. It changes whether the premium experience they have trusted for years still feels worth paying for." Now the strategy has a human dimension.

The 5 P's as a Storytelling Lens

A useful storytelling lens is the 5 P's.

People

Who matters in the story? Consider:

  • customers;

  • employees;

  • decision-makers;

  • stakeholders.

Place

Where is the decision happening? Consider:

  • market;

  • geography;

  • organisation;

  • industry;

  • competitive environment.

Pictures

What can the audience see? This might include:

  • visuals;

  • examples;

  • customer journeys;

  • data;

  • diagrams.

Personal

What makes the issue relatable? This could involve:

  • a customer experience;

  • a stakeholder consequence;

  • a recognisable situation.

Platform

How are you delivering the story? Think about how:

  • slides;

  • speaking;

  • visuals;

  • transitions;

  • and Q&A

work together. You do not need to force all five into every presentation. Use them as prompts for building greater connection.

Story Should Support Strategy

A story becomes dangerous when it begins to drive the solution rather than support it. For example, your team may discover a powerful anecdote about one unhappy customer. That does not necessarily prove that the entire market has the same problem. Likewise, a dramatic employee story may be emotionally compelling but strategically irrelevant.

  • Ask: Does the story represent the broader evidence? and: Does it help the audience understand something important about the decision?

If not, leave it out.

The Story Spine

Before building slides, try completing this sequence:

  • SITUATION The organisation is currently __________.
  • COMPLICATION However, __________ has changed.
  • QUESTION Therefore, management needs to decide __________.
  • ANSWER We recommend __________.
  • PROOF We believe this because __________.
  • EXECUTION We will implement it through __________.
  • IMPACT This will enable the organisation to __________.

If those seven statements connect logically, you probably have a story. If they feel disconnected, keep working.

The "Why Are You Telling Me This?" Test

For every section of the presentation, imagine the judge asking: "Why are you telling me this?" Your answer should be immediate. For example:

  • Customer Analysis
    • Why are you showing it?
    • Because it demonstrates that our highest-value customers are the group leaving fastest.
  • Financial Analysis
    • Why are you showing it?
    • Because it demonstrates that Retention creates more economic value than additional acquisition spending.
  • Implementation
    • Why are you showing it?
    • Because the judge needs to see that the strategy can be executed within the organisation's current capabilities.

If the answer is unclear, the section may not belong—or its purpose may need to be clearer.

Discover Your MAD Skills Principle

A presentation story is not designed to entertain. It is designed to make the logic of the decision easier to follow.

Every section should answer a question created by the section before it.

The Bottom Line

A strong case story moves the audience through:

  • SITUATION → COMPLICATION → QUESTION → ANSWER → PROOF → EXECUTION → IMPACT

The audience should always understand:

  • where they are,
  • why it matters,
  • where you are taking them,
  • why they should follow you there.

Chapter 6: The Executive Summary Is the Destination

Once you have built the story, give the judges the destination. An executive summary should answer the most important questions quickly:

  • What is the problem?
  • What do you recommend?
  • What will it accomplish?

This allows the judges to understand the argument before you begin providing the detailed proof.

Why Give the Answer Early?

Think about how executives typically consume information. They rarely want to hear ten minutes of analysis before discovering why you called the meeting. They want to know:

  • What are you asking me to approve?
  • Then:
  • Why should I approve it?

The executive summary therefore creates a useful contract with the audience. You are essentially saying: "Here is our conclusion. Now let us show you why we believe it."

The Three Essentials

At minimum, a strong executive summary should communicate three things.

  • Problem
    • What is the core issue?
    • Do not simply describe the situation.
    • Identify what matters.
    • For example, declining retention among ACME's highest-value customers is eroding profitability.
  • Recommendation
    • What should the organisation do?
    • State the decision clearly.
    • For example: Launch a targeted loyalty strategy focused initially on high-value customers.
  • Impact
    • What will it accomplish?
    • Connect the recommendation to measurable or strategic value.
    • For example: increase Retention, reduce dependence on acquisition, and restore profitable growth.

Those three elements already give the audience a usable mental model.

Additional Elements

Depending on the case, you may also include:

  • Key Strategic Actions
    • What are the major components of the strategy?
  • Financial Impact
    • What investment or economic benefit matters most?
  • Implementation Timing
    • How quickly will the strategy move?
  • Major Risk
    • What is the most important uncertainty and how are you managing it?

These are optional. Do not include them simply because there is space on the slide.

The Executive Summary Is Not a Table of Contents

A weak executive summary says: "Today we will discuss the situation, our analysis, the alternatives, our recommendation, implementation, and risk." That tells the audience what slides are coming. It does not tell them anything useful about the decision. A strong executive summary says: "ACME's profitability problem is being driven primarily by customer churn. We recommend a targeted loyalty strategy beginning with high-value customers. A six-month pilot allows ACME to validate adoption before scaling and is expected to restore profitable growth with manageable financial exposure." Now the audience understands the answer.

The One-Sentence Test

Ask: Can we explain our entire recommendation in one sentence? For example: We recommend that Company X focus on retaining its highest-value customers through a targeted loyalty program, supported by a digital experience upgrade, to restore profitable growth. That sentence contains:

  • the action;

  • the target;

  • the mechanism;

  • and the impact.

If you cannot articulate the recommendation, the solution may not yet be sufficiently focused.

A Useful Recommendation Sentence

One structure is:

We recommend [ACTION] for [TARGET], supported by [KEY ENABLERS], to achieve [IMPACT].

For example: We recommend expanding into Western Canada through a strategic partnership, supported by localised distribution and digital customer acquisition, to create a lower-risk path to national growth. Again, this is not a script. It is a thinking tool.

The Executive Summary Should Survive Alone

Imagine the judge remembers only one slide from your entire presentation. Could the executive summary tell them:

  • what the problem was;

  • what you recommended;

  • why it mattered?

If not, it needs work. A strong executive summary should function as a compressed version of the strategic argument.

Don't Overload It

Because the executive summary is important, teams sometimes try to fit the entire case onto a single slide. That defeats the purpose. Avoid trying to include:

  • five insights;

  • three alternatives;

  • six financial metrics;

  • a full implementation timeline;

  • four risks;

  • twelve KPIs.

The executive summary is not the entire presentation in miniature. It is the destination and the roadmap. Keep it crisp.

Executive Summary Example

A simple structure might be:

Problem Recommendation Impact
High-value customer churn is eroding profitability Launch targeted loyalty strategy Restore profitable growth

Then underneath:

  • Key Actions: Pilot → Measure → Refine → Scale
  • Investment: $X million
  • Expected Impact: +X% retention / $X incremental profit

This gives the audience a clear orientation without requiring them to absorb the entire case at once.

The Executive Summary and the Story Must Match

There should be no surprise between the executive summary and the rest of the deck. If the executive summary says Retention is the central problem, but most of the analysis focuses on new customer acquisition, the story becomes inconsistent. Likewise, if the executive summary promises a low-risk strategy but the implementation requires a massive, irreversible investment, the logic may not hold. The executive summary acts as a promise. The rest of the presentation must deliver on it.

The Summary Test

Before finalising the executive summary, ask:

  • PROBLEM Can the judge identify the central issue immediately?
  • RECOMMENDATION Is it clear what we want the organisation to do?
  • IMPACT Can the judge see why the recommendation matters?
  • FOCUS Have we avoided unnecessary detail?
  • CONSISTENCY Does the rest of the presentation support what we are saying here?
  • MEMORY If this were the only slide the judge remembered, would it represent our solution accurately?

If yes, the executive summary is doing its job.

Discover Your MAD Skills Principle

Give the audience the destination before asking them to follow the journey.

The executive summary tells them where you are going. The rest of the presentation demonstrates why that destination makes sense.

The Bottom Line

A strong executive summary should allow the judge to answer:

  • What is wrong?
  • What should we do?
  • What will happen if we do it?

At minimum: PROBLEM → RECOMMENDATION → IMPACT. Then let the rest of the presentation provide the proof.

Mad Skills Drill

Before opening PowerPoint, complete two exercises.

Exercise 1: The Story Spine

Fill in:

  • Situation:
  • Complication:
  • Question:
  • Answer:
  • Proof:
  • Execution:
  • Impact:

Read the seven statements aloud. Do they sound like one connected argument?

Exercise 2: The One-Sentence Recommendation

Complete: We recommend __________ for __________, supported by __________, to achieve __________.

Then remove any word that does not need to be there. Your goal is not to make the sentence impressive. Your goal is to make it clear. If your team can tell the case story and explain the recommendation without slides, you are ready for Part IV: Deck Architecture, building the deck before you build the slides.

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