A decision log is a shared record of consequential choices. Each entry states the decision, the alternatives considered, the reason, the owner, and a review date. It makes the reasoning available to people who were not in the room.
What should a decision log contain?
Keep each entry short enough to scan. The goal is to preserve context, not to transcribe a meeting.
- A clear decision statement and the date it was made.
- The problem or constraint that required a decision.
- The alternatives considered and the reason for the choice.
- The person responsible for carrying it out.
- The result expected and a date to review it.
When is a decision log useful?
Use one when a choice affects several people, is hard to reverse, or is likely to be questioned later. Product scope, campaign budget, hiring priorities, and changes to a customer promise are good candidates. Small routine decisions rarely need a formal entry.
The log is most valuable when teams link to an entry from the project plan or status update. That gives the decision a home without requiring everyone to search old chats.
How do you keep the log useful?
Write the entry when the decision is made, assign an owner, and include a trigger for revisiting it. A review trigger can be a date, a budget threshold, or new customer evidence. Mark superseded entries rather than deleting them; the history explains how the team arrived at its current position.
A compact decision log entry
Decision: for the next four weeks, publish one practical tutorial each weekday instead of three short social posts. Why: the team can maintain the tutorial cadence and wants to answer recurring customer questions in depth. Owner: content lead. Review: after four weeks, compare qualified visits and reading completion against the previous four weeks. Revisit earlier if publication takes more than two days per tutorial.