Traceable Executive Summary Prompt

Start here

Paste the full long draft into an ordinary AI chat that accepts text. Number the paragraphs first (P1, P2, P3…) or let the model number them as they appear. Then paste the complete prompt appended with this asset, replacing the input lines with your own:

• SOURCE DRAFT — the long text to summarize.
• SUMMARY AUDIENCE — who will read it (manager, client, committee).
• SUMMARY LENGTH — a target word or bullet count.
• READER GOAL — what the reader must decide or understand.
• SENSITIVITY NOTES (optional) — names, figures or claims to flag rather than include.

What you get back

The prompt returns four fixed sections: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY with [Pn] citations, a CLAIM TRACE table, OPEN GAPS, FLAGGED ITEMS, plus a short COVERAGE NOTE.

How to check the output

1. Every [Pn] citation points to a real, correctly numbered paragraph.
2. Every quoted phrase in CLAIM TRACE appears word-for-word in your draft.
3. No fact, figure or recommendation appears in the summary that is missing from CLAIM TRACE.
4. The summary fits your target length.
5. Anything the source treats as uncertain stays uncertain in the summary.

Prerequisites, permissions and limits

No terminal, account or API setup is needed — any chat that accepts a pasted text works. This prompt only produces text. It does not browse, open files, contact anyone, schedule anything, or send or publish the summary; those actions remain yours. Do not paste confidential material into a tool you do not trust. If the source is too long for one message, paste it in numbered chunks and ask the model to merge the per-chunk traces and mark paragraphs counted twice. source reviewed; runtime not tested.

FAQ

What if I leave out the audience or reader goal? The prompt tells the model to stop and ask you for any missing required input before producing anything.

What if two paragraphs contradict each other? Both are placed in OPEN GAPS and the conflict is flagged, instead of the model quietly choosing one.

Complete reusable prompt

You are an editorial assistant helping me compress a long draft into a short executive summary whose claims I can trace back to the source. Work only from the material I paste below. Do not add facts, numbers, names, dates, recommendations or conclusions that are not already present in the source. This task is summarizing an existing draft, not researching, sending, publishing or making decisions — you only produce a draft summary for me to review.

INPUT I WILL PROVIDE

1. SOURCE DRAFT — the full long text to be summarized, broken into numbered paragraphs (I will number them, or you may number them P1, P2, P3… as they appear).
2. SUMMARY AUDIENCE — who will read the summary (for example a manager, a client, a committee).
3. SUMMARY LENGTH — a target word or bullet count.
4. READER GOAL — what the reader needs to decide or understand after reading.
5. SENSITIVITY NOTES (optional) — any names, figures or claims I want flagged rather than included.

YOUR TASK Step 1 — Read the whole source draft and build a private claim map: list each distinct factual claim, figure, date, named party, or recommendation, and the paragraph number(s) where it appears. Do not force a fixed count; include what exists. Step 2 — Select the claims that matter to the stated READER GOAL and drop the rest. If the source is silent on something the reader would obviously expect, do not invent it — list it under OPEN GAPS instead. Step 3 — Write the executive summary within the target length, using clear plain prose. Every sentence that states a fact must carry a bracketed citation of the source paragraph(s) it came from, like [P4]. Step 4 — Add a short coverage note: which source paragraphs contributed and which were left out.

OUTPUT FORMAT (exactly these headings) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY <the summary, with [Pn] citations after each sourced claim>

CLAIM TRACE A table with columns: Claim in summary | Source paragraph(s) | Exact quoted phrase from source (short).

OPEN GAPS Bullet list of reader-relevant items the source does not address. Write "none identified" if empty.

FLAGGED ITEMS Names, figures or claims matching my SENSITIVITY NOTES, quoted with their paragraph numbers, or "none".

COVERAGE NOTE One or two sentences naming included and excluded paragraphs.

UNCERTAINTY AND MISSING INPUT If SOURCE DRAFT, SUMMARY AUDIENCE, SUMMARY LENGTH or READER GOAL is missing, stop and ask me for it before producing anything. If the source is ambiguous on a point, mark it [UNCLEAR] rather than guessing. If two source paragraphs conflict, place both in OPEN GAPS and flag the conflict instead of choosing. If the draft is too short to compress meaningfully, say so and summarize it as-is without padding.

CHECKS BEFORE I USE IT

1. Every [Pn] citation points to a real, correctly numbered paragraph.
2. Every quoted phrase in CLAIM TRACE appears verbatim in the source.
3. No claim, figure or recommendation appears in the summary that is absent from CLAIM TRACE.
4. The summary fits the target length.
5. Drop any claim the source treats as uncertain, unless the summary carries the same uncertainty.

BOUNDARIES Do not browse, open files, contact anyone, schedule anything, or send or publish the summary. You produce text only. Distinguish clearly between describing what the source says and recommending an action. Do not smooth over gaps with plausible-sounding filler. If a provider feature for summarizing or splitting long documents is unavailable to me, I can paste the source in numbered chunks and run this same prompt per chunk, then ask you to merge the per-chunk traces and mark any paragraph counted twice.

WORKED EXAMPLE (illustrative only, not real data) Label: FICTIONAL MINI INPUT SOURCE DRAFT (excerpt): P1 We tested the new intake form on thirty orders last week. P2 Each order took eleven minutes longer than before. P3 Two customers emailed to say the form was confusing. P4 We have not yet decided whether to keep it. P5 Costs rose by £40 total. SUMMARY AUDIENCE: operations lead. SUMMARY LENGTH: 3 bullets. READER GOAL: decide whether to keep the form. SENSITIVITY NOTES: flag any customer counts.

ILLUSTRATIVE OUTPUT SHAPE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• The new intake form added roughly eleven minutes per order across thirty orders tested [P1][P2].
• Two customers reported confusion with the form [P3].
• No decision has been made on keeping the form [P4]. CLAIM TRACE table rows: "eleven minutes per order" -> P2 -> "eleven minutes longer"; "two customers confused" -> P3 -> "form was confusing"; "no decision" -> P4 -> "not yet decided". OPEN GAPS: whether the extra time or cost is acceptable; P5 cost figure not used because it was outside the reader goal and target length. FLAGGED ITEMS: "Two customers" (P3) matches the sensitivity note about customer counts. COVERAGE NOTE: Included P1–P4; excluded P5 cost figures.

PASS/FAIL CHECKS ON THAT EXAMPLE PASS if each bullet carries a citation and the flagged customer count appears in FLAGGED ITEMS. FAIL if the summary states the form saved money, invents a decision, or cites a paragraph that does not contain the quoted phrase.

References and reuse

• ChatGPT release notes · Reviewed 2026-10-04

Original TokRepo prompt · CC BY 4.0. Reference documents retain their own rights.