Top Line Report

The top line report is usually part of a comprehensive research report, summarising the key findings in a short document for top management. Usually 2 or 3 pages, the top line report is targeted specifically at senior management, using language they are comfortable with and avoiding market research jargon. It is a key document as it will be far more widely read, and at higher levels, than the full market research report.

For readability, the top line report is often provided in point format, and often clients request the top line in Powerpoint format, so it can be easily merged into their own presentations to top management.

If analysis is a part of the breif, a key section of the topline report must address implications, and be action oriented in nature. It should clearly relate the results back to the original management or research questions, completing the loop from management questions to research questions to results and back.

In academic or other management areas, the topline report can be viewed as similar (though not totally analogous) to an "executive summary".