Hi Every One,
It's amazing that in the space of a week I have come across business managers/owners who are poles apart in their requirements of management data. One wants so much detail that even the local yellow pages seems to contain less information, the other has 6 pieces of information he looks at daily. He said he originally had more but realized over time they were surplus to requirements. What do you look at? Is there too much or too little information? So with what you have can you sleep at night? Do you know what is going on?

Managers have very little idea of what they need to manage with. Those who are less sure of themselves want everything. It makes them feel happier that they may catch something. Well they won't, and they don't. In reality they can't make any sense of it and suffer from an information overload! In the corporate world there are Business Warehouses and Management Information Systems, Executive Information Systems, Dashboards and even cockpits! None have been that successful for managing.

Why not? Well they are used by middle mangers to make a case for their own self importance and analytical grandstanding. Also to prove to themselves that the time spent making spreadsheets on their MBA was invaluable! It's also created a plethora of software tools that middle managers can play with.

Managers need to know what runs their organization. Each person will have a different set of numbers. Even two managers running the same operation at different locations will use different metrics! Why? Why not? As long as the end result is productive, does it matter? They may have a different approach to management but share a common vision.

So let's look at it. Do you need to look at a discrete number, say volume or a ratio; say, volume per hour? The ration tells you a little more but it's still only one number. If the ratio is out of range, check it. So think in terms of ratios for your business. Create dashboards on your system that can show you this information in an instant. You'll be on top of your business but not micro managing your staff! Big difference. Plus you'll probably be sleeping better!

The best managers are the most creative in selecting information. Ratios are preferred and an ideal range can easily be determined. Drill down is fairly simple, responsible people can be pinpointed and a downward trend stopped in its tracks.

Getting information on your business should be just as much a creative approach as an analytical one!

Get creative get results!

Best Regards......