How to Write a Staff Summary Sheet

A staff summary describes members of a staff in brief.

Business owners, managers or people seeking funding for projects will occasionally be required to provide information about existing or anticipated staff. A small business that is expanding will go to a bank with necessary financial items, descriptions of the business and goals. Listing the current staff and additional required for growth is common. A manager of one department at a large corporation will write a staff summary to fill a request by CEOs or CFOs. Staff summaries are slightly different than Executive Summaries, but they have similar qualities. The staff summary is typically less elaborate.

Instructions

1. Ask all staff members for their job description as they see it. Sometimes companies have formal job descriptions that detail each position, but as individuals take on the jobs, they often realize different elements or additional tasks required. If the summary will list only a few people, ask also for a line or two of biographical background. This information comes in handy for other reasons, too, such as websites or brochures about the business.

2. Draft a general list of staff members to include their names, their rank, title and positions, and a line or two describing the position. If the summary is only for a dozen people or so, a line or two about each individual's skills, talents, hobbies or outside interests may be included. This always depends on who is to receive the summary. Know what the purpose of the summary is before offering more detail than necessary. If it's going to a financial group, the summary usually is more focused on the job. If it's going to the committee head for a holiday party, more personalized information is commonly permissible. The same is true if someone is casting the annual talent show or planning a staff function for morale or team building fun.

3. Add details to the list. Sometimes the person requesting the summary wants a lot of details about particular members of an existing staff. Others only want to know about the positions and who is holding them. Then there are those who only want a list of staff that would be required for a given project or job. :

4. Elaborate on each staff member when that is requested, or elaborate on the position. Sometimes a staff position is unfilled, so note that as vacant. For a proposal for additional funds or resources, names are omitted but the position is described fully.

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5. Rank the list either according to importance of the staff position or alphabetically by job or a person's name. This is sometimes a matter of personal choice, but at other times will be requested specifically, as when a CEO asks for the entire 70 member staff list for all currently filled positions in Department B/Building 1. If you are unsure of how much information to provide beyond job and a person's name, don't hesitate to ask.

6. Type the list up cleanly. Add a header at the top that clearly states: Staff Summary -- XYZ Business, with the date submitted. Proofread the document, sign it or show at the end the person who created the list and their contact information in case any questions subsequently arise. Submit it to the intended recipient. Keep all records pertinent to the document, such as staff bios, work histories and so forth. These are handy to refer to in case of mistakes or if higher ups want to know more about a particular job or individual.

Tips & Warnings

• If your staff summary is in-house for a smaller number of employees, and you have time, ask each person to verify what you've written up about them.

• Write generally, and use clear descriptors and a positive tone. The summary isn't the same as a performance report of who did what or why you like Mr. A more than Miss B. Remain objective.

• If standard, add contact information such as phone, email and fax for each position. Sometimes this is handy for in-house staff lists, but it can also be presented online or distributed elsewhere for reference purposes.

• Never include confidential information in a summary; privacy is important.

References

• Fort Hays State University: Office Staff Summary:
• Fractured Atlas Staff List
• Staff Summary Sheet: Military Example

Resources

• DHHS: Office of Community Services Staff
• Habitat NYC: Our People
• Sample Job Descriptions
• All About Dogs: Meet our Staff
• Living Routes: Our Staff