How MSPs Can Deliver a Lean Quarterly Stakeholder Brief If you’re an MSP, you already know that quarterly business reviews can take hours to prepare, maybe even longer to present. But what if your smaller or fast-moving clients don’t need full QBRs? Before we begin, be sure to subscribe to NinjaOne’s IT Video Hub and our YouTube channel for more tech content like this. The Lean Alternative to QBRs Traditional QBRs are comprehensive. They cover strategic roadmaps, in-depth cybersecurity metrics, and long-term planning. But for many SMB clients, that level of detail isn’t always necessary. A lean stakeholder brief focuses on security performance, operational risks, key metrics, and clear next steps. It delivers actionable insights without requiring a 30-slide deck or 90-minute meeting. Think of it as a strategic snapshot, not a deep dive. Prerequisites for a Lean Quarterly Stakeholder Brief Before you start brainstorming your brief, you’ll need a few essentials: access to core metrics like uptime, patch compliance, and incident resolution (ideally from your RMM platform), a shared, repeatable template, a clearly defined audience and delivery method, a consistent cadence, like the first Friday of each quarter, Optionally, scripting capability to extract metrics automatically With these in place, the process becomes streamlined and repeatable. And it begins with clarifying the purpose of this report. How to Deliver a Lean Quarterly Stakeholder Brief Start your brief by setting expectations. Clearly state what this document is, how it’s structured, and why it matters. That single clarification prevents confusion and positions the document appropriately. Here's an intro example. Consistency saves time, so build a section-based template with fixed headings. Take this table as an example. Use bullet points. Keep it clean and focused—and always tailor it to the client’s priorities. The key to making this sustainable is automation. Instead of manually gathering metrics, use your RMM tools to extract them. For example, you can use the following script to generate relevant metrics and insert them into your memo as a .txt file. Remember to keep your brief short: one to two pages or even a structured email. Avoid slide decks unless specifically requested. Use consistent file naming and deliver via email, Microsoft Teams, Slack, or a designated point of contact. The goal is clarity, not presentation polish. Next, be transparent about this report. A QBR is comprehensive and strategic. This is not that. Nonetheless, it’s important to position this clarification positively and invite deeper discussion if needed. Close with a simple feedback request. Overall, lean stakeholder briefs aren’t about doing less. They’re about delivering the right level of insight efficiently. With the right structure and tools, you can replace time-consuming QBRs with lightweight, high-impact updates your clients actually read. For more information, check out our official blog post on delivering lean quarterly stakeholder briefs, linked in the description below.