Most company reports won't help you decide anything. They show a number. They don't say what to do with it.
Before I send anything on, I run it through a simple filter. Three layers:
- Reality. What is happening right now? Just the facts, no spin.
- Interpretation. What does it mean?
- Next step. What is the decision?
An example from last week:
Reality: out of 20 leads, 2 made it to a proposal. Interpretation: the number of leads is fine, but they get lost in qualification. Next step: rewrite the qualification questions and measure again in two weeks.
Three lines instead of a three-page deck.
And one rule: if the third line is missing, it isn't a basis for a decision. It's just a nice chart.
How many of your reports stop at "what is happening" and never get to "what now"?