Decisions made in a crisis, on-the-ground facts, stakeholder communications, and the impacts reflected in results… Everything flows quickly while it is happening; what is valuable is to turn what is learned “afterwards” into a permanent system. For this reason, the TypeCalendar team has prepared more than 47 After Action Report (AAR) Templates to collect post-event/post-operation learning in a standard structure to reduce repetitive errors, memorize good practices and produce applicable actions for the next task.
These templates, which can be used in different scenarios from emergency response to marketing campaign, post-IT outage review to field operations, allow teams to ask “what happened, why did it happen, what worked/didn’t work, and what will we do differently next time?” he brings his questions together on the same page.
Table of Contents
What Is an After Action Report (AAR)?
AAR is a structured report that documents the event flow, decision points, evidence (data–timeline–log) and learnings after an event/operation is completed. The goal is not to look for criminals; it is to establish an evidence-based healing cycle. AAR connects findings to actionable recommendations, improving performance in the next iteration.
Why Use an AAR?
- Organizational learning: Good practices become standards, mistakes become preventive controls.
- Responsibility and transparency: Who did what, when, with what data; the decision trail becomes clear.
- Risk reduction: The source of recurring problems is targeted with root cause analysis (5 Why, Fishbone).
- Rapid improvement: Prioritized actions are tracked with owner and deadline.
TypeCalendar After Action Report Template Collection: 47+ Variants
The collection includes backbones specific to emergency/disaster, public security & EMS, IT incident management & post-mortem after outage, cyber security incidents, operations & logistics, field training & exercises, marketing campaigns, product launches and plant/production scenarios. Each variant speaks the same language as the situation summary, scope and objectives, timeline, findings–evidence, root cause analysis, effects (operational–financial–reputation), recommendations and action plan sections; it offers a legible layout ready for audit and management presentations.
How to Use: Practical Flow
Start with a quick draft: event summary, scope, initial findings and timeline. Then, validate the data with logs, metrics and stakeholder interviews during the evidence collection phase. Conduct root cause analysis with a small team; focus on process/interface errors rather than individual errors. Finally, link the action plan with the priority–owner–date trio; plan the follow-up meeting from the beginning (e.g. +14 days). When the AAR is complete, create a brief “executive summary” for sharing the learnings and assign it to the relevant teams.
File Formats and Ease of Use
This package comes in DOCX (Word) and PDF formats.his package comes in DOCX (Word) and PDF formats. DOCX versions are designed to be quickly filled in with title–body–table styles and placeholders; sections such as “summary”, “timeline table”, “space for root caus. PDF versions are ready for sharing and archiving with a fixed layout and embedded fonts; printing is easy thanks to printer-friendly margins and numbered sections/pages. Header–footer spaces are also set for corporate letterhead use; the page structure compatible with e-signature processes is maintained.
Download: From Incident to Learning, From Learning to Standard
A report should tell not only ”what happened“, but also ”how to be better next time”. TypeCalendar’s 47+ After Action Report Template collection standardizes evidence-based learning, strengthening organizational memory with a clear timeline, robust root cause analysis and trackable action plan. Download the package; fill out the report, attach the evidence, own the actions, trust a learned system rather than chance in the next mission.
