Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Management information in the form of up to the minute reports or drill-down analysis tools are fundamental parts of a manager's armoury.
It is so easy however to become so focussed on the here and the now that trends and year on year or week on week comparisons can become lost. It is the understanding of these business trends that dictate whether a business or elements within it are moving in the right direction.
A benefit that derives from taking a business's processes and embodying them into well-constructed databases is that this allows key performance indicators or KPIs to be drawn at a frequency that fits a business's needs in a consistent manner. This data frequently displayed in a graphical manner allows a business's leaders to see at a glance the fruits of their efforts, and pinpoints very early on, where things are not as they should be.
Waiting for financials every month can at best be a delay, and at worst can be too late. Without doubt, a properly constructed KPI package married to good, real time management information provides the invaluable tools a manager needs.
