Keep the evidence trail intact from first source to next action.

Sequence

Six stages, one review trail.

01

Evidence

Name the source, owner, date, scope, and status before using a fact in the review.

02

Insight

Write the finding as an owner-authored statement and keep its evidence references attached.

03

Story

Place approved findings in a clear executive order without adding claims that the evidence does not support.

04

Presentation

Choose only the modules needed for this audience and record every manual inclusion or exclusion.

05

Meeting

Confirm the purpose, decision points, owners, and evidence gaps before the room opens.

06

Follow-through

Record decisions, actions, outcomes, and the next-cycle disposition in the APS workspace.

Evidence labels

Say what is known, and how well it is known.

Verified

A named source and owner support the statement for the review period.

Provisional

A source exists, but scope, date, or owner confirmation is incomplete.

Assumption

The review owner is using a stated working assumption until evidence arrives.

Missing

No acceptable source supports the statement. Keep the gap visible.

Story structure

Build the Story around the decision.

1. 01Start with the review purpose and the decision the meeting must support.
2. 02Order findings by decision need, not by who supplied the evidence.
3. 03State the evidence label beside each finding.
4. 04Separate confirmed facts, assumptions, and unresolved questions.
5. 05End with named decisions, owners, due dates, and the next review point.

Presentation choices

Include only what the approved Story needs.

1. 01Use a module when the approved Story contains the fact it needs.
2. 02Leave a module out when it repeats another point or lacks evidence.
3. 03Record the reason when you include or exclude a module manually.
4. 04Treat optional modules as choices, not default slides.

Meeting guidance

Prepare the decisions before the room opens.

1. 01Send the purpose and decision list before the meeting.
2. 02Name a decision owner and a recorder before discussion starts.
3. 03Mark evidence gaps without trying to settle them from memory.
4. 04Read back each decision, action owner, and due date before closing.

Follow-through

Keep decisions connected to actions and outcomes.

1. 01Record the decision and the options considered.
2. 02Link each action to its decision, owner, due date, and dependency.
3. 03Update outcomes with an evidence label and the next-cycle disposition.
4. 04Carry unresolved work forward explicitly or close it with a reason.

Worked example

Fictional example: North Quay Foods

This example is fictional. It does not describe a client or a promised result.

Context

Leadership needs to decide whether to change the weekly planning cadence.

Evidence

Verified: meeting records show that three functions use different cut-off times. Provisional: the effect on service has not been confirmed.

Story

The current cadence produces conflicting plans. The meeting should decide one cut-off owner and commission evidence for the service question.

Follow-through

Decision: appoint the planning lead as cut-off owner. Action: finance and operations test the service question before the next cycle.

Common mistakes

Five ways a review loses trust.

1. 01Turning an assumption into a fact because it sounds plausible.
2. 02Using a number without its period, scope, source, and owner.
3. 03Adding every available presentation module.
4. 04Leaving decisions in meeting notes without an owner or due date.
5. 05Closing the cycle without recording what carries forward.

Quality checklist

Check the trail before the cycle closes.

• ✓Every material statement has an evidence label.
• ✓The Story contains no claim beyond its approved evidence.
• ✓Presentation choices match the audience and approved Story.
• ✓The meeting has named decision points and owners.
• ✓Every action has a due date or a stated reason why it does not.
• ✓Outcomes and next-cycle choices remain in the APS workspace.