Away but Informed: A Guide to Mission Trips Briefing
Essential steps and strategies for crafting effective mission reports.
As it happens, I was last week away for a work-related trip.
And this was an excellent occasion to familiarise myself with writing mission reports.
So I did a little research before I wrote mine, and I would like to share with you what I've learned.
Without further introduction, let’s jump right into it.
Why you need to prepare mission reports
Your manager must know everything that happens in his or her department.
I get this sentence from 'The Unwritten Rules of Business', one of my all-time favourite books — no seriously, you must read this.
It is the role of your manager to be aware of the success — or failure — of your mission, and to allocate resources according to its results. If you fail to report it faithfully and efficiently, how do you expect him or her to help you help the company?
But if you don't do it for your manager, at least do it for you. A mission report helps you gather the information you gathered during your mission. It's a great tool to help you put on paper and solidify your thoughts, impressions, priorities, and next steps.
Because if your company spent hundreds of euros on shipping you across Europe, you had better make the most of it — or else.
What your mission report is for (and what it isn't)
We know who your report is for, and why. But what is a mission report?
It's a brief document (two pages max) that summarises the most important elements that you gathered during your mission and the action items that follow.
The report must be factual, to the point, and have clear business implications for your organisation, or department, or your role.
Avoid trivia that have nothing to do with the mission (the restaurant you dined at, if you were well received by the locals, whether you had to take a taxi or not, etc.).
That said, let's now consider how to structure your brief.
How to structure your mission report
Assume the person reading your brief has only five minutes to get a grasp of it.
When I know someone else will read my document, I always start with an executive summary. It lists the three most important points and the implications for the business.
Then, list the key action items and follow-up after the mission. This part is to make sure that you will transfer what you learned during the mission into concrete actions.
Before going into the description of the mission itself, include some context: why did you go? Why was your presence requested/important? What is the broader picture of this single meeting?
Describe the mission in short paragraphs. Don’t go into minute details, that’s what the appendix is for.
Brush the achievement, results, and lessons learned from the mission at the end of the mission description.
Before the conclusion, I include a brief financial overview of the trip. The idea is to present my manager with the minimal information to quickly assess the cost of the trip.
Finally, end with an appendix to attach all relevant documents (the agenda of the meeting, the notes you took during the conference, the slide deck the presenter shared...).
Summarised here for convenience, it gives:
Basic information about the mission (where, when, who…)
Executive report
Follow-up and action items
Context
Summary of the mission
Achievement, results, and lessons learned
Financials
Appendix
Writing the report (i.e. what to include)
We have a structure. But should you write your report in this order ?
Well no, duh!
Work your way up. You'll want to start by compiling all the notes you took during the various meetings, conferences, and workshops and summarise them in a few paragraphs. No more than a page. You have your main summary of the trip.
What then? Prepare the followup part by highlighting the immediate consequences for the business, department, or yourself. What are the next actions you have to take?
From that, you can work on your executive summary. What are the top 3 pieces of information that your manager needs to know?
Then make count of your travel expenses and you're about done! Send your report to whom it may concern, and hop on your next flight!
Now, this is a personal point of view on mission reports. I'm not saying my version is perfect. Don't hesitate to comment or strike down my proposal, if you feel like it. 😅
If you found it useful, on the other hand, why not share this guide with a colleague?
Safe travel (and enjoy your reporting).