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Board Deck Builder

  • 94 installs
  • 451 repo stars
  • Updated July 21, 2026
  • borghei/claude-skills

board-deck-builder is a Claude skill that assembles board and investor update decks by pulling perspectives from all C-suite roles.

About

board-deck-builder is a Claude skill that assembles board and investor update decks by pulling perspectives from each C-suite role. A founder or operator uses it to prepare board meetings, investor updates, quarterly business reviews, or fundraising narratives. It provides section-by-section templates, deck-type structures, and rules like requiring a one-sentence explanation for every metric variance.

  • Assembles board and investor decks with a section owner and narrative for each C-suite role
  • Section templates for exec summary, metrics dashboard, financials, pipeline, product, and asks
  • Four deck types (quarterly, monthly, fundraising, emergency) with structure and slide counts

Board Deck Builder by the numbers

  • 94 all-time installs (skills.sh)
  • Ranked #1,388 of 3,282 Productivity & Planning skills by installs in the Skillselion catalog
  • Data as of Aug 5, 2026 (Skillselion catalog sync)
At a glance

board-deck-builder capabilities & compatibility

Free; generates deck content, no API keys stated.

Capabilities
board meeting · presentation builder · investor update
Use cases
presentations · project management
Pricing
Free
From the docs

What board-deck-builder says it does

Assembles board and investor update decks by pulling perspectives from all C-suite roles.
SKILL.md
Build board decks that tell a story, not just show data.
SKILL.md
Boards see 10+ decks per quarter -- yours needs a through-line.
SKILL.md
npx skills add https://github.com/borghei/claude-skills --skill board-deck-builder

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Listed on Skillselion
Installs94
repo stars451
Last updatedJuly 21, 2026
Repositoryborghei/claude-skills

What it does

Assemble a board or investor update deck with a per-section owner, narrative, and metrics dashboard.

Who is it for?

Founders and operators preparing board meetings, investor updates, QBRs, or fundraising decks.

When should I use this skill?

When preparing board meetings, investor updates, quarterly business reviews, or fundraising narratives.

What you get

A structured board deck where every section has an owner, a narrative, and a clear so-what.

  • board or investor deck
  • metrics dashboard section
  • asks and decisions slide

By the numbers

  • 4 deck types (quarterly, monthly, fundraising, emergency)
  • quarterly board deck is 20-30 slides
  • metrics dashboard limited to 6-8 metrics

Files

SKILL.mdMarkdownGitHub ↗

Board Deck Builder

Build board decks that tell a story, not just show data. Every section has an owner, a narrative, and a "so what." Boards see 10+ decks per quarter -- yours needs a through-line.

Keywords

board deck, investor update, board meeting, board pack, investor relations, quarterly review, board presentation, fundraising deck, investor deck, board narrative, QBR, quarterly business review, board report, metrics dashboard, bad news delivery, variance explanation

---

Clarify First

Before generating, confirm these inputs. If any is unknown or vague, ASK — do not assume:

  • [ ] Deck type and audience (quarterly board, monthly update, fundraising, emergency) — sets slide count, structure, and which sections appear
  • [ ] The headline message this period (beat plan / missed plan / need a decision) — drives the opening frame and whether the SOUF bad-news structure is needed
  • [ ] Which metrics the board actually tracks (and their targets) — the metrics dashboard should show only these, with RAG status against targets
  • [ ] Specific asks or decisions needed from the board — the asks section is the highest-value slide and must be concrete and owner-assigned

Stop rule: ask only the 2-3 that most change the output. If the user says "just draft it," proceed and list your assumptions at the top of the artifact.

---

Deck Types and Structure

Deck Type Selection

TypeWhenSlide CountSent in AdvanceKey Section
Quarterly Board DeckStandard board meeting20-30 slides48 hours aheadFull deck below
Monthly UpdateEarly-stage boards8-12 slides24 hours aheadMetrics + risks
Fundraising DeckActive fundraise12-15 slidesDuring meetingVision + traction
Emergency/Ad-hocCrisis or major decision5-8 slidesDependsSituation + options

---

Standard Board Deck (Section by Section)

Section 1: Executive Summary (CEO)

Three sentences. No more. No less.

SentencePurposeExample
1State of the business"We closed Q3 at $2.4M ARR, up 22% QoQ"
2Biggest development this period"Signed our largest enterprise contract ($180K ACV)"
3Forward-looking priority"Q4 priority: close Series A and hit $2.8M ARR"

Anti-pattern: "We had a good quarter with lots of progress across all areas." Why it fails: Says nothing. Board learns nothing. Time wasted.

Section 2: Key Metrics Dashboard (COO)

6-8 metrics maximum. Every metric needs a target and a status.

MetricThis PeriodLast PeriodTargetStatusTrend
ARR$2.4M$1.97M$2.3M[G]Up
MoM Growth8.1%7.2%7.5%[G]Up
Burn Multiple1.8x2.1x< 2x[G]Improving
NRR112%108%> 110%[G]Up
CAC Payback11 mo14 mo< 12 mo[G]Improving
Headcount242125[Y]Below plan

Rule: Only show metrics the board actually tracks. Ask what they care about. Remove anything they have said they do not care about.

Section 3: Financial Update (CFO)

ComponentIncludeFormat
P&L SummaryRevenue, COGS, Gross Margin, OpEx, Net BurnTable with variance column
Cash PositionCurrent balance + runway in monthsSingle number, bold
Burn Multiple Trend3-quarter trendLine chart
Variance to PlanEach line item vs. budgetTable with one-sentence explanations
Forecast UpdateNext quarter projectionsConservative, base, upside

Rule: Every variance needs a one-sentence explanation. "Revenue was below target" with no explanation is unacceptable.

Section 4: Revenue and Pipeline (CRO)

ComponentIncludeFormat
ARR WaterfallOpening -> New -> Expansion -> Contraction -> Churn -> ClosingWaterfall chart
NRR and Logo ChurnCurrent + 4-quarter trendTable + trend line
Pipeline by StageDollar amounts, not just countsFunnel visualization
ForecastNext quarter with confidence level"High confidence $2.6M, upside to $2.9M"
Top 3 DealsName, amount, close date, riskTable

Rule: Forecast MUST include a confidence level. "We expect $2.8M" is weak.

Section 5: Product Update (CPO)

ComponentIncludeFormat
Shipped This Quarter3-5 items with user impactBullet list
Shipping Next Quarter3-5 items with target datesBullet list
PMF SignalsNPS trend, DAU/MAU, feature adoptionMetrics table
Key LearningOne insight from customer researchNarrative paragraph

Rule: No feature lists. Only features with evidence of user impact.

Section 6: Growth and Marketing (CMO)

ComponentInclude
CAC by ChannelTable with efficiency trend
Pipeline Contribution$ by channel
What's WorkingSpecific channels/campaigns with data
What's Being CutUnderperforming channels
What's Being TestedNew experiments with hypothesis

Section 7: Engineering and Technical (CTO)

ComponentInclude
Delivery Velocity4-quarter trend
Tech Debt RatioCurrent + plan to address
InfrastructureUptime, incidents, cost trend
Security PostureOne line unless there is a material issue

Rule: Keep this short unless there is a material issue. Boards do not need sprint details.

Section 8: Team and People (CHRO)

ComponentInclude
HeadcountActual vs. plan
HiringOffers out, pipeline, time-to-fill trend
AttritionRegrettable vs. non-regrettable
EngagementLatest survey score and trend
NotableKey hires, key departures, key open roles

Section 9: Risk and Security (CISO)

ComponentInclude
Security PostureStatus of critical controls
ComplianceCertifications in progress, deadlines
IncidentsThis quarter (if any): impact, resolution, prevention
Top 3 RisksRisk description + mitigation status

Section 10: Strategic Outlook (CEO)

ComponentInclude
Next Quarter Priorities3-5 items, ranked by importance
Board Decisions NeededSpecific votes or approvals
AsksSpecific, actionable requests

Rule: The "asks" section is the most important. "We'd like 3 warm introductions to CFOs at Series B companies" beats "any help would be appreciated."

Section 11: Appendix

Include but do not present unless asked:

  • Detailed financial model
  • Full pipeline data
  • Cohort retention charts
  • Customer case studies
  • Detailed headcount breakdown

---

Narrative Framework

The 4-Act Structure

Every board deck should follow this through-line:

Act 1: WHERE WE SAID WE'D BE
  Last quarter's targets and commitments

Act 2: WHERE WE ACTUALLY ARE
  Honest assessment -- good and bad

Act 3: WHY THE GAP EXISTS
  One cause per variance. Not excuses -- explanations.

Act 4: WHAT WE'RE DOING ABOUT IT
  Specific, dated, owned actions

This works for good news AND bad news. It is credible because it acknowledges reality.

Opening Frame

The board should know the key message by slide 3, not slide 30.

Good OpeningBad Opening
"We beat ARR target by 8% and NRR hit 112%""Let me walk you through our quarter..."
"We missed revenue by $300K. Here's why and the fix.""First, some context about market conditions..."
"We need a board vote on the acquisition opportunity""Before we get to the main topic, some updates..."

---

Delivering Bad News

The SOUF Framework

StepWhatExample
StateState it plainly"We missed Q3 ARR target by $300K (12% gap)"
OwnOwn the cause"Primary driver: longer enterprise sales cycle than modeled"
UnderstandShow you understand it"Analyzed 8 stalled deals; pattern is procurement delays"
FixPresent the fix"Three changes: [specific, dated], revised Q4 target: $2.6M"

Bad News Anti-Patterns

Anti-PatternWhy It FailsBetter Approach
Leading with good news to softenBoards notice and distrust framingLead with the most important thing
"Market conditions" as causeThat is context, not a causeName specific, controllable causes
Fix without dataBoard does not trust unfounded fixesShow analysis behind the fix
Revised forecast without assumptionsLooks like guessingShow bottom-up build

---

Common Board Deck Mistakes

MistakeFix
Too many slides (> 25)Cut ruthlessly. If you can not explain it, the slide is wrong.
Metrics without targetsEvery metric needs a target and a status indicator
No narrativeData without story forces boards to draw conclusions
Burying bad newsLead with it, own it, fix it
Vague asksSpecific, actionable, person-assigned asks only
No variance explanationEvery gap from target needs a one-sentence cause
Stale appendixAppendix is only useful if current
Designed for reader, not roomDecks are presented -- they must work spoken aloud
Inconsistent formattingUse one template, one color scheme, one font
Too much text per slideMax 6 lines per slide. Use speaker notes for detail.

---

Cadence Notes

TypeTimingLengthAdvance Send
Quarterly (standard)48 hours before meeting20-30 slides48 hours
Monthly (early-stage)24 hours before meeting8-12 slides24 hours
FundraisingIn the meeting12-15 slidesSometimes not shared

---

Deck Assembly Workflow

T-14 days: CEO sets agenda, identifies key messages
T-10 days: Section owners begin drafting their sections
T-7 days:  First drafts due. CEO reviews for narrative alignment.
T-5 days:  Second drafts. CFO validates all numbers.
T-3 days:  Final deck assembly. Narrative check.
T-2 days:  Send to board. Include cover note with 3 key takeaways.
T-0:       Meeting. CEO presents. Section owners available for questions.

---

Red Flags

  • Deck assembled night before the meeting -- no time for review or narrative alignment
  • Numbers in deck do not match financial model -- credibility destroyer
  • No asks section -- wasting board meeting time
  • Same deck format for 4+ quarters with no iteration -- not responsive to feedback
  • Board members surprised by information -- they should never learn bad news in the meeting
  • More than 30 slides -- attention lost after slide 20
  • No follow-up on previous meeting's action items -- accountability gap

---

Integration with C-Suite

Each section is owned by a specific C-suite role:

SectionOwnerReference Skill
Executive SummaryCEOceo-advisor
Metrics DashboardCOOcoo-advisor
Financial UpdateCFOcfo-advisor
Revenue/PipelineCROcro-advisor
Product UpdateCPOcpo-advisor
Growth/MarketingCMOcmo-advisor
EngineeringCTOcto-advisor
Team/PeopleCHROchro-advisor
Risk/SecurityCISOciso-advisor
Strategic OutlookCEOceo-advisor

---

Output Artifacts

RequestDeliverable
"Prepare the board deck"Complete deck outline with section owners and data requirements
"Monthly investor update"Condensed update: metrics, highlights, risks, asks
"Help with the narrative"4-act narrative structure with key messages
"Deliver bad news"SOUF framework applied to specific situation
"Fundraising deck"Vision-led deck with traction, team, market, ask
"Review my board deck"Critique against best practices, identify gaps

---

Tool Reference

deck_structure_validator.py

Validates board deck completeness against best-practice section requirements.

# Validate with demo data
python scripts/deck_structure_validator.py

# Validate specific deck type with slide count
python scripts/deck_structure_validator.py --type quarterly --slides 24

# Validate with section list
python scripts/deck_structure_validator.py --sections executive_summary metrics_dashboard financial_update

# Validate from JSON file
python scripts/deck_structure_validator.py --input deck.json

# JSON output
python scripts/deck_structure_validator.py --input deck.json --json

metrics_dashboard_generator.py

Generates formatted board-ready metrics dashboards with RAG status and trends.

# Generate demo dashboard
python scripts/metrics_dashboard_generator.py

# From JSON metrics file
python scripts/metrics_dashboard_generator.py --input metrics.json

# From CSV file
python scripts/metrics_dashboard_generator.py --csv metrics.csv

# JSON output
python scripts/metrics_dashboard_generator.py --json

board_prep_checklist.py

Generates T-minus timeline checklists for board meeting preparation.

# Generate checklist for meeting 14 days out
python scripts/board_prep_checklist.py

# Specific meeting date with completed tasks
python scripts/board_prep_checklist.py --meeting-date 2026-04-15 --completed agenda_set topics_confirmed

# List all task IDs
python scripts/board_prep_checklist.py --list-tasks

# JSON output
python scripts/board_prep_checklist.py --meeting-date 2026-04-15 --json

---

Troubleshooting

ProblemLikely CauseFix
Board members ask basic questions answered in the deckDeck not sent far enough in advance or not self-explanatorySend 48+ hours ahead with a 3-takeaway cover note; ensure deck reads standalone
Financial numbers don't match across sectionsNo CFO cross-validation stepAdd T-5 day CFO validation checkpoint; single source of truth for all metrics
Meeting runs over time on early sectionsToo much detail in presenter slides, no time boxingEnforce max 6 lines per slide; use speaker notes for depth; assign timekeeper
Board members surprised by bad newsInformation not previewed in 1:1 pre-callsCEO pre-briefs each board member on material issues before the meeting
Asks section produces no follow-throughAsks are vague ("any help appreciated")Make asks specific, named, and actionable ("3 warm intros to Series B CFOs")
Same deck format for 4+ quarters with no improvementNo post-meeting feedback loopRate deck effectiveness at meeting end; iterate one section per quarter
Appendix never referencedAppendix is stale or not relevant to current agendaUpdate appendix before every meeting; remove data nobody has asked about in 2+ quarters

---

Success Criteria

  • Board members report reading the deck in advance in 80%+ of meetings (measured by pre-meeting questions received)
  • Meeting stays within time allocation with 70%+ of time on strategic discussion, not status updates
  • Every board meeting produces at least 2 logged decisions with named owners and deadlines
  • Bad news is never a surprise in the meeting -- all material issues previewed via 1:1 pre-calls
  • Board NPS (informal quarterly check) scores 8+/10 on meeting usefulness
  • Deck assembly completes by T-2 days with zero last-minute scrambles in 90%+ of quarters
  • Action items from previous meeting have 80%+ completion rate reported at the next meeting

---

Scope & Limitations

In Scope: Board deck structure, section templates, narrative frameworks, bad news delivery, metrics dashboards, deck assembly workflows, board prep checklists, quality validation.

Out of Scope: Actual financial data collection, slide design/visual formatting, board member relationship management, legal governance requirements, proxy statement preparation, regulatory filings.

Limitations: This skill provides structure and process but cannot replace the judgment required for crafting board narratives. The deck structure validator checks completeness, not quality of content. Metrics dashboard tools calculate RAG status from provided data but do not source live metrics.

---

Integration Points

SkillIntegration
ceo-advisorExecutive summary and strategic outlook sections; overall narrative direction
cfo-advisorFinancial update section; all numbers validated through CFO tools
cro-advisorRevenue and pipeline section; ARR waterfall and forecast confidence
cmo-advisorGrowth/marketing section; CAC by channel, marketing ROI data
chro-advisorTeam/people section; headcount, attrition, engagement metrics
ciso-advisorRisk/security section; security posture, compliance status
board-meetingDeck feeds into the 6-phase board meeting protocol
chief-of-staffPrep checklist coordination; section owner orchestration
company-osScorecard metrics flow directly into the metrics dashboard section

Related skills

FAQ

What deck types does it support?

Quarterly board deck, monthly update, fundraising deck, and emergency/ad-hoc, each with a set structure and slide count.

What does it require before generating?

Deck type and audience, the headline message this period, which metrics the board tracks, and the specific asks or decisions needed.

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