Getting information out.
WHAT STANDARD REPORTS PROVIDE
Financial statements Ageing of receivables and payables Inventory valuation Sales analysis
WHAT THEY FREQUENTLY DO NOT PROVIDE
Exactly what management asks for.
WHAT OPTIONS EXIST
Configurable reports within the system Extraction to a spreadsheet A separate reporting tool reading the database A data warehouse for cross-system reporting
WHY SPREADSHEET EXTRACTION PERSISTS
It is flexible and familiar.
WHAT IT COSTS
Figures that diverge from the system, and manual effort repeated.
WHAT TO LIMIT
Reporting done outside the system.
WHAT DASHBOARDS SHOULD SHOW
The few measures that drive decisions.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
What each measure means, precisely, and who owns the definition.
WHY
Disagreement about figures usually turns out to be disagreement about definitions.
WHAT REAL-TIME REPORTING COSTS
Load on the operational system.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT
Report from a copy, for anything heavy.
WHAT TO VERIFY WHEN A REPORT IS BUILT
That it reconciles to a figure already known.
WHAT PERIOD-END REPORTING REQUIRES
The period closed, so figures do not change afterwards.
WHAT TO AUTOMATE
Recurring reports, delivered on schedule.
