How to create effective reports?
The creation of precise and detailed reports allows you to control business processes on an ongoing basis. It supports quick reaction in crisis situations, data analysis and drawing accurate conclusions. All this leads to more effective operations and increased revenues. So how do you create legible, reliable and effective reports? In this article, we will answer this question!
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What should a reliable report contain?
Creating reliable reports in business is more and more appreciated. Of course, in large companies and corporations, this has been the preferred activity for years and standards have already been created that facilitate the creation of unified and clear data summaries. Unfortunately, in smaller companies the reporting aspect is sometimes overlooked, and this is a really big mistake.
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Reports may concern various activities and elements of running a business. It is worth analyzing and reporting regularly:
sales records
sales processes
company expenses and revenes
budget foreccasting
team performance
effectiveness of meetings
effecriveness of specific actions
Remember that the report should meet the expectations of managers. It should take into account the set goals, and its analysis should provide tangible results. The point is not to make compiled reports, but to make reports readable.
A reliable report should contain up-to-date, well-edited data. Therefore, when creating data sets, it is worth defining the direction of research and ensuring that all the necessary data is collected. An investment, the effectiveness of which you will quickly appreciate, is a system that allows you to integrate, edit and collect data from various IT systems and databases that your company collects. Make sure that the system provides for the definition and management of structures between different programs.
An effective solution is to use the Intense Platform, which enables:
- data orientation for quick readings to increase reporting efficiency
- advanced integration of data from multiple sources
- analytical data modeling in many scenarios
- use and composition of divisors
- integration with Excel
- building report trees in the company structure
- sharing statements in the system, browser and on mobile devices
- automatic distribution of reports or notifications
When is it worth creating reports
A well-made report allows for reliable analyses and forecasts. It is a short and effective way to improve work efficiency and increase revenues in business. Data summaries should be prepared according to a developed template within a specific time period, e.g. every six months, every month, or a year – depending on the collected data.
Most often, analysts and entrepreneurs regularly create reports:
weekly about the actions taken by the team
on the status of business projects
marketing (mainly online)
company development strategy
extensive annual reports compeiling a large amount of data
budgeting
Of course, the collected and analyzed information differs depending on the industry in which we operate. The statements created by a production company will be different to others by the e-commerce business, but in each case they should be properly prepared for analysis.
What challenges may arise when creating reports?
The first and most difficult challenge, while at the same time appearing most frequently in businesses, is the integration of data from various systems and files. During our work, we use many IT systems, Excel documents and other databases. The right tool to integrate these elements will be considered almost essential.
Another element that facilitates the creation of reports – especially periodic ones – is the automation of this process. Comprehensive reporting systems such as INTENSE Data Viewer allow you to create and distribute a large number of reports. You can define different access rules for users yourself. The system interface is very clear and intuitive, which also facilitates data analysis.
Personalization of reports is the key to success
Our advice on clear and reliable reports is universal. They will work in large and small enterprises. However, remember that your compilations and data analyses must be tailored to the needs of your team. It is worth reviewing archival reports and comparing them to determine what is worth changing. When introducing new solutions, take into account the needs of all the people analyzing and compiling data. Their experiences can positively influence the shape of reports and the process of their execution.
You can find more information on the modeling and data analysis systems here.
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