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Data & Analytics

Reporting automation: build the report once

The weekly report shouldn't need a person to assemble it every week. Define it once, and the schedule builds it from the same definitions every time, waits for a reviewer where judgment matters, and holds it when the data isn't ready.
Discuss your systemSee a month of report runs ↓
Weekly operations · Week 42Jobs completed142+8 vs last weekBooked revenue$61.4kon targetFirst response11 mintarget 15Jobs by locationNorthside52Eastside47Riverside43Commentary · waiting for reviewReviewed · Ops managerData as of Mon 05:10 · sent 07:00OwnerOps managerLocation leads

A fixed cost that grows

Every recurring report is a small, permanent job. Export, paste, check, format, send. Add a client, a location or a new metric and the job grows, every week, forever.

Reporting automation turns the job into a definition: which metrics, which breakdowns, which layout, for whom, how often. The time that went into building the report goes into reading it, and every version uses the same numbers.

A month of runs

Three kinds of report on three rhythms. Some run on the clock, some wait for the period to close, one waits for a person.

October

  1. 2 OctMonthly client reports · sent when September closed
  2. 5 OctWeekly operations · sent 07:00
  3. 5 OctQuarterly board pack · waiting for review
  4. 6 OctQuarterly board pack · approved and sent
  5. 12 OctWeekly operations · held: accounting missing; sent 10:20 after re-run
  6. 19 OctWeekly operations · sent 07:00
  7. 26 OctWeekly operations · sent 07:00

On the 12th the accounting export didn't arrive, so the report waited instead of going out short. It went at 10:20, once the load was re-run. Nobody had to remember to check.

Six parts of an automated report

  1. 01

    Governed inputs

    Reads the model, not the exports

    Reports draw on validated, modeled data and shared metric definitions, so two reports can't disagree about the same number.

    Watch for: a “quick” report built straight on a raw export.

  2. 02

    Templates

    Defined once

    The metrics, breakdowns and layout of each report type, generated per period, client, location or team.

    Watch for: one-off edits made to a single week's output instead of the template.

  3. 03

    Schedules and triggers

    On the clock, or when the data is complete

    Weekly reports run at a set time. Monthly ones can wait until the period's data has closed.

    Watch for: schedules that run before their slowest source arrives.

  4. 04

    Review where useful

    A person adds what the numbers can't

    Client-facing and board reports can pause for someone to check them and write commentary. Internal reports usually send on their own.

    Watch for: review steps that nobody is named to do.

  5. 05

    Delivery

    The right version to the right people

    Email, a dashboard link, a PDF, or a shared folder, per recipient.

    Watch for: sending everything to everyone.

  6. 06

    Failure handling

    Held, not sent short

    When validation fails, the report waits and its owner is told what's missing.

    Watch for: a “send anyway” default.

One template, many versions

An agency's monthly client report, defined once. Each client gets their own version from the same template.
Client ATheir ad accounts and calls only; two locationsPDF to the client, review by the account lead first
Client BSame template, plus a lead-source breakdownDashboard link, sends on its own
Client CSame template, quarterly comparison addedPDF, review by the account lead first

What was sent, when, to whom

Every run leaves a record: when the data was complete, which checks passed, who reviewed it, and who received which version. When a client asks “did we get the September report?”, the answer takes seconds.

  1. 05:10data.completeAll five sources loaded for Week 42
  2. 05:12checks.passed6 of 6 checks
  3. 05:14report.generatedWeekly operations · Week 42
  4. 05:14review.requestedOps manager
  5. 06:41review.approvedCommentary added
  6. 07:00report.sentOwner, Ops manager, 3 location leads

What reporting automation hands off

In

Modeled data
validated, defined metrics
Templates
metrics · breakdowns · layout
Recipients
who gets which version
Reporting automation
schedule · assemble · review · send

Out

Reports
on schedule, per recipient
Delivery record
what, when, to whom
Held reports
with the reason and owner

Worth building when the report recurs

Good fit

  • The same report is rebuilt every week or month.
  • Several clients, locations or teams get versions of the same report.
  • The data is collected reliably, or can be.

Not the right fit

  • The report is an occasional, exploratory analysis. That's analyst work, not a pipeline.
  • The data underneath can't be reached or trusted yet.

Where reporting automation does its work

Next to reporting automation

Questions about reporting automation

Can automated reports still include commentary?

Yes. Reports that need interpretation pause for a named reviewer, who adds commentary before they go out. The numbers are calculated; the commentary is written, or reviewed, by a person.

What formats can reports be delivered in?

Email with the figures in the body, a PDF, a link to a dashboard, or a file in a shared folder. Each recipient can get a different format of the same report.

What happens if the data isn't ready on time?

The report waits, its owner is told what's missing, and it goes out once the data arrives, or is released deliberately with a note. It never goes out short without anyone knowing.

Do we need new reporting software?

Not necessarily. A modest system can schedule reports from a tool like Metabase on top of a PostgreSQL model. What matters is that reports read governed data; the tool is a starting choice, not a requirement.