Monthly business review software
Monthly business review template, ready to run
The MBR template that finds what's stuck and leaves with an owner and a date for every fix. Pre-reads, status, agenda, actions and AI follow-up are already set up. Start it today and run your first review this month.
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- Pre-read questions and reminders built in
- Every objective's status on one screen
- Actions with owners and dates, followed up by Nova AI
- Decisions logged automatically
Watch how it works
See the Monthly Business Review template in action
What changes from your first review
No setup project. The template comes with the steps, the questions and the timing, so the benefits start with the first meeting.
Booked for the year
The review repeats on its own, the same week every month, with reminders before the pre-read deadline. Nobody has to organise it.
No more reading slides aloud
Leads share a one-paragraph pre-read 48 hours early. Nova AI summarises them in one view, so the meeting starts informed.
Time goes to what's red
Every objective's status sits on one screen, filtered to at risk and off track. The meeting is spent unblocking, not reporting.
Every action has an owner
Actions leave with one owner and one date, and Nova AI reminds owners before each date. Decisions land in the decision log.
How to run a monthly business review
The monthly business review (MBR) is the meeting that keeps the quarter honest. Once a month every department lead sits down with one goal: find what's stuck and get it moving. Done well, it catches drift in week four instead of week eleven, while there's still time to fix it.
A 100-minute agenda
- Read in silence15 min
- Status on screen15 min
- Deep dive60 min
- Actions and decisions10 min
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Once, before the first review
Agree the rules out loud
The template opens with a short kickoff session that explains how the MBR differs from a status meeting. Agree the date for the year, what "at risk" means (for example more than 10% behind the expected pace) and the pre-read deadline: no pre-read, no slot on the agenda.
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48 hours before
Each lead shares a short pre-read
One paragraph on how the month went, the status of each objective they own, their biggest win and exactly what they need from other teams.
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15 min
Read in silence
Everyone reads every pre-read before anyone speaks. It's the simplest way to make sure each team gets real attention.
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15 min
Status on screen
Each objective is marked done, on track, at risk or off track, on one screen, so the room sees the whole picture at once.
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60 min
Deep dive on what's red
Filter to at risk and off track. Each owner names the metric and the issue in two sentences, then the whole room works on unblocking it.
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10 min
Agree the actions and read the decisions back
Every action leaves with one owner and one date. Decisions are read back before people leave and land in the decision log.
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Between reviews
Follow up before each date
Nova AI reminds owners before their date, and anything slipping opens the next review.
Status on screenOctober · 11 objectives
2 Done5 On track3 At risk1 Off track
What's inside the monthly business review template
- A kickoff session that explains how the MBR works and what makes it different from a status meeting.
- A recurring monthly review, organised by quarter, that runs on its own once it's set up.
- Pre-read questions for each lead: how the month went, the status of each objective, wins and what they need from others.
- A status review with the same four statuses every month: done, on track, at risk, off track.
- Deep dive and action steps that turn every red item into an owner and a date.
- AI steps already set up: summarise the pre-reads, write up the actions and follow up with owners. No prompt writing.
- Calendar connection and reminders, so recurrences and deadlines run without anyone chasing.
Monthly business review software vs slides and spreadsheets
You can run an MBR with a slide deck and a calendar invite. Most teams stop by month three, because someone has to chase every pre-read and copy every action into another tool. Software earns its place when it does the chasing.
| Slides and spreadsheets | Nova | |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduling | Someone books it every month | Repeats on its own, with reminders |
| Pre-reads | Chased by email, read in the meeting | Collected 48 hours early and summarised by AI |
| Status | One slide per team | Every objective on one screen |
| Actions | Copied into another tool, or lost | Owner, date and a reminder before it's due |
| Decisions | In someone's notes | In the decision log, automatically |
| Prep for the leader | Hours before each review | Minutes: read the summary |
One ritual of your business operating system
The MBR works best as one part of a business operating system: the rhythm of meetings and decisions that runs the company. Nova is business operating system software for leadership teams, and executive meeting management software in one: each ritual is a process that feeds the next. Decisions from the weekly sync reach the monthly review, the review feeds the quarter, and the quarter feeds the board. AI coworkers own the preparing and the follow-up, which makes it an AI business operating system rather than another meeting tool. Start with the MBR and add the rest when you're ready.
- Every weekLeadership syncDecisions and blockers
- Every monthMonthly business reviewWhat's stuck, and who fixes it
- Every quarterQuarter review and planningWhat to keep, change and carry over
- Every quarterBoard meetingThe few decisions that need the board
See the whole rhythm in the Operating Rhythm Guide and the governance playbook.
Frequently asked questions
What is a monthly business review?
A monthly business review (MBR) is a 90 to 100 minute meeting where department leads review the status of every objective, focus on what is at risk or off track, and leave with actions that each have one owner and one date. Updates are shared in a short written pre-read 48 hours before.
What should a monthly business review template include?
Pre-read questions (how the month went, the status of each objective, wins and what each team needs from others), a status scale (done, on track, at risk, off track), a timed agenda, and a place to record actions with owners and dates and the decisions taken.
Who should attend a monthly business review?
The CEO or general manager and every department lead who owns an objective. Keep it to the people who can unblock work. Others read the summary afterwards.
What is the difference between an MBR and a QBR?
A monthly business review catches drift during the quarter and fixes it. A quarterly business review looks back at the whole quarter, compares results with commitments and sets the next quarter. The MBR is shorter and focused on unblocking.
Can I run a monthly business review without OKRs?
Yes. Ask each department to bring its top three monthly priorities and give each one a status. Short pre-reads and a clear status already bring most of the focus back.
Three ways to start
Run it yourself today, or have it set up with you. Either way, your team runs its first cycle this month.
Use the template
Start the Monthly Business Review template from the process library. The steps, questions, timing and AI are already set up. Free to try, no credit card.
Use the template free Done with youDone-With-You Implementation
No time to set it up? Our team installs it inside Nova with your leadership team, adapted to your company, objectives and calendar, and runs the first cycles with you.
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Keep going
Run your first monthly business review this month
The template is ready: steps, questions, timing and AI already set up. Or let our team install it with your leadership team.