For consultants finishing the deck
Action Title Generator for Consulting Slides
Your slide titles rewritten as action titles: each slide's conclusion in one sentence, why the old title fell short, and the evidence to prove it.
Free to start. No card needed.
How to write action titles by hand
An action title states a slide's conclusion as a full sentence instead of naming its topic. Write it from the evidence, not the old title. Ask what one thing the chart shows, then lead with that finding and its number: "Freight rose 22% while volumes fell" (example). Slideworks1, a slide-template company founded by former McKinsey and BCG consultants, recommends one message per title, in two lines and 15 words at most.
Test each title by asking whether a colleague could disagree; nobody can argue with "Cost overview," so it tells the reader nothing. Then read the titles alone, in order, as an executive skimming the pre-read would. Barbara Minto's pyramid principle2, which she applies to slide presentations as well as memos, puts the single main thought on top. So the answer should come within the first few titles, and each later one should support it.
Finally, check each title against its slide, bad news included, because the title is what a busy reader keeps. The board that investigated the 2003 loss of the shuttle Columbia3 singled out a briefing slide titled "Review of Test Data Indicates Conservatism for Tile Penetration." Only at the bottom did it say one estimate of the debris was 640 times larger than the data behind the damage model. Edward Tufte, the Yale expert the board cited, proposed a more appropriate headline: "Review of Test Data Indicates Irrelevance of Two Models."
Before and after
Action title examples
Eight before-and-after action title examples from typical consulting decks. The clients and numbers are invented for teaching; the pattern is what to copy.
| Before: a topic | After: an action title | What changed |
|---|---|---|
| Customer survey results | Two in three surveyed customers would switch to a rival offering next-day delivery | States the finding, as a share of those surveyed |
| Cost to serve analysis | Freight is 41% of cost to serve and the fastest-rising cost since 2023 | Says what the analysis found, not that it happened |
| Q3 sales performance | Q3 sales missed plan by 8%, all of it in the two new regions | Adds the number and where the problem sits |
| Interview findings | Store managers don't trust the forecast: 9 of 12 override it every week | Names the theme and how many people raised it |
| Pricing was reviewed by the team and a number of issues were identified across the regions | Discounts above 15% need no approval and cost 3 points of margin | Passive and vague at 16 words; now active, specific and shorter |
| Warehouse options | Of three options, one national warehouse saves the most: $2.4M a year | Says which option wins, and by how much |
| Competitive landscape | Two online-only rivals took 6 points of share in two years | Turns a label into the threat the client faces |
| Next steps | Approve the pilot by March 15 so it runs before the summer peak | Turns a label into the decision the client must take |
All eight are illustrations written for this page. River writes yours from the numbers on your own slides.
How it works
How River writes your action titles
Drop the deck as PowerPoint or PDF, up to 10 files, or paste your slide titles or findings in order. River reads every slide before it writes a word, noting what each chart shows and every number with its unit, period and source. Then it rewrites each title as the conclusion that slide can prove, in 15 words or fewer, and keeps titles that already work word for word. Next to each rewrite, it says why the original fell short and what evidence the slide needs.
River works only from what your slides or pasted notes show. Where a title needs a number the slide lacks, it writes a placeholder such as [growth rate since 2023] and adds it to a list to confirm. If two slides give different figures for the same measure, it keeps each slide's own figure and flags both. Figures the slide calls estimates stay marked as estimates in the title, and go on the same list.
Last, it reads the new titles alone, in order, and names where the story jumps or stalls, often at a missing cost, risk, timing or decision. Use it when the analysis is done but the deck still reads like a table of contents. If the argument itself needs work, start with the storyline builder or the pyramid principle template. For a partner's read of the whole deck before the meeting, use the consulting deck review.
How it works
From topic titles to action titles
Paste or drop
Paste your slide titles or findings in order, or drop the deck as PowerPoint or PDF.
River reads each slide
It reads every title with the slide beneath it, noting the numbers and sources already there.
Get your action titles
Your doc holds each old and new title, why it fell short, the evidence needed and a story check.
Edit and go further
Edit any title in the doc, or ask River to draft the executive summary from the new titles.
| Slide | Your title | Action title |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Customer survey results | Two in three surveyed customers would switch for next-day delivery |
| 4 | Cost to serve | Freight is 41% of cost to serve and the fastest-rising cost since 2023 |
| 7 | Warehouse options | One national warehouse saves the most: $2.4M a year |
| 11 | Next steps | Approve the pilot by March 15, before peak season |
Slide 4 needs each cost's growth since 2023, with its source.
What you'll get
Topic titles rewritten as conclusions, with the evidence each slide needs
- A full-sentence action title of two lines or fewer for every content slide
- Why each original fell short, and the evidence its slide needs to prove the new title
- A read-across check that the new titles alone tell the story in order
Before and after
Your topic titles in. Conclusions out.
A 12-slide distribution review, dropped in as a PowerPoint. Among its titles: Executive summary · Customer survey results · Cost to serve · Warehouse options · Risks · Next steps.
Slide 2 · Customer survey results. Now: Two in three surveyed customers would switch for next-day delivery. Why: a topic, not a finding. Slide needs: the survey's base size and the question as asked. Slide 4 · Cost to serve. Now: Freight is 41% of cost to serve and the fastest-rising cost since 2023. Why: a topic, with no number. Slide needs: each cost's growth since 2023, with its source. Read across: slides 2 to 7 build the case for one national warehouse, but none says what the move costs. Add a slide: "The move costs [amount] and pays back in [years]."
Every new title uses only what the slide shows, and names what is missing.
What lands in your doc
What's in your action titles
- An action title for every content slide, with titles that already work kept word for word
- Why each original fell short, such as a topic instead of a finding, no number or too long
- The evidence each slide needs to prove its title, such as a chart, source line or sample size
- A read-across check: the new titles alone, in order, and where the story jumps or stalls
- Figures that disagree between slides, flagged with both slide numbers rather than merged into one
- A list to confirm before the deck goes out: every [placeholder] and missing piece of evidence
Questions consultants ask
Common questions
What are action titles?
Action titles are slide titles that state what the slide proves, not what it covers. "Survey results" is a label; "Two in three surveyed customers want next-day delivery" (example) is an action title. Researchers call them sentence headlines: in a 2006 Virginia Tech study4, students taught from such slides answered 79% of questions on key points correctly. Students who saw the same points in the slide body scored 69%.
How long should an action title be?
Two lines at most, which usually means 15 words or fewer. Slideworks1, a slide-template company founded by former strategy consultants, recommends that limit, and the sentence-headline design tested at Virginia Tech4 used the same two-line cap. If a title won't fit, the slide is probably making two points and should be split. Otherwise, cut qualifiers before you cut the number.
Do McKinsey consultants use action titles?
Yes. Slideworks1, a slide-template company whose founders are former McKinsey and BCG consultants, calls action titles one of the most important skills management consultants are taught. Its founders write that at those firms, title quality was reviewed as carefully as the analysis. "McKinsey-style slides" usually means this format: one point per slide, stated in the title and proved by the chart beneath it.
How do I write action titles with River?
Drop your PowerPoint or PDF into the box at the top of this page, or paste your slide titles or findings in order. River reads each slide and writes every new title, why the old one fell short and the evidence each slide needs. It all lands in a doc in your free River workspace, where you can edit it or ask for changes.
Will it change the numbers on my slides?
No. River copies every number exactly as your slide or notes give it, so 41% never becomes "4 in 10." It adds no ratio or cause the slide doesn't state. When a title needs a figure the slide doesn't have, you get a bracketed placeholder instead of a guess. Your deck file stays as it is, since the new titles land in a separate doc.
Is my deck private?
Your deck stays in your own River workspace unless you share it. River's privacy policy says your documents are not used to train AI models, and the AI services River uses are bound by agreements not to train on them either. If your client contract limits where draft material can go, check it before you upload.
Is the action title generator free?
Yes, it is free to start, with no card needed. Your action titles open in a River workspace, where you can edit them, share them or ask River to change them. Paid plans add more AI use and access to the most advanced models.
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