Blogs

The end of the year signals a few universal experiences for all of us. We celebrate more, take fewer meetings, and spend way too much time reporting on our efforts. The end of December means reporting on how we did for the month, the quarter, and the entire year. 

It’s a stressful time, particularly when you’re trying to connect the dots for those who may not be familiar with your day-to-day responsibilities. How can you accurately communicate the impact you made on the organization’s goals with a few metrics? On the other end of the spectrum, how can you advocate for more resources if you can’t prove where the inefficiencies currently are? 

These are frustrations that many of us feel. We know that data is useful, but we can’t seem to access the right information or give the right context for our reports. So, how do we get to a place where we’re creating better, more complete reports that drive action? 

We start with the data. 

Data collection needs to be automatic 

The value of any report relies on how the data was collected. Too often, companies must build reports based on a small data set or self-reported data. While something is better than nothing, this doesn’t give executives enough context to make operational strategies with confidence. Many must fill in the gaps with their best hypothesis. 

The stakes are too high to make guesses, even if they are well-educated ones. For your team to operate at a high level, you need to have a complete picture of what’s working and what isn’t. You need data collected from all platforms, across all teams, for each of your accounts.

An automated tool will be the best tool for your teams. Not only will it be more accurate than self-reported data, but it will also mean more time for your teams to focus on their work, rather than filling in time reports. 

Next steps should be obvious 

Another issue that companies run into with their current reporting system is lack of clarity. They can see the data, but they aren’t clear on what to do about it. Particularly if there are gaps in your data, it’s difficult to know how a change in one strategy will impact operations across other teams. 

A workflow intelligence platform, like Retain.ai, provides visibility into all efforts for each account. You can see exactly what individuals are doing to move each customer through their journey, and how it is impacting your specific goals. 

The impact can be felt immediately and over time. Immediately, your team can see the small tweaks necessary to be more profitable. But long-term, this switch ensures that your team does not invest in costly new processes or platforms that don’t address a core operations issue. 

Reports should evolve with your enterprise

The final way that your current reporting methods may be prohibiting efficient operations is their fixed nature. AI and machine learning evolve with your company. Each update you make to your processes and playbooks teaches AI reports about where you’re headed and the best way to get there. 

Static reporting mostly tells you where you’ve been based on what was important to you before. To be competitive in today’s market, you need reports that help you proactively optimize your best practices, share knowledge, and reach your goals efficiently. 

So, are your reports really making your business less efficient? Only you can answer that question. But for most enterprises, unless you’re using workflow intelligence, it’s likely they aren’t helping you the way they could be.