Creating a graph for each activity you wish to keep a track of:
- Gross Income
- Total Sales
- Mail Out
- Bills Paid
- Accounts Receivable
- Accounts payable
- Value of Serviced Deliver
Just to name a few.
The vertical line going up is for the amounts.
The horizontal line going across is for the dates or week-ending.
When you first start putting a graph together, it helps if you have some previous weeks to work with, to establish the best picture for a graph that will give you accurate data you can work with.
Download a free sample Business Controller Staff Report and graph.
You can have a graph that has too highs and lows – ups & down which take the full length of the page. This is not good because it is difficult to read the trend: FLAT – UP – OR DOWN.
It can go the same the other way and be too flat and its difficult to see the trend because it always looks flat.
Excel gives you many types of graphs or charts you can use and the reason for this they all have a special purpose.
For our purpose we like to use a thickish line graph which when going up it shows BLACK and when going down it shows RED.
Excel does not do this for us so we needed to find a program that would – the programmer made it go right.
During our research and trials with graphs we found people in general liked to see graphs trending upwards, the morale was high and they were happy to share their achievements.
However when the graphs trended downwards with thickish red lines, they didn’t like to look at them for very long and in fact would try hide or make excuses why they were down – this went for owner-managers as well as employees.
We found it is important action to take the time and work on the actual graphing numbers which do show an instant picture.
Download a free sample Business Controller Staff Report and graph.
I would recommend all business owners to try their exercise and put their last 14 weeks sales figures on a graph with black lines for rises and red lines for falls and look at what the graph is showing you, then do the same with your banking for the same period.
Now observe you own reactions.
Do not under estimate the power of a graph and what it communicates to you.
On a business level large or small you need this management monitor – call them what you will KPIs or STATISTICS.
It’s what they can show you in an instant is what is important.
There is much to learn on this subject of graphs as a management tool for employers and employee alike.
Now you can spend the time on excel or doing all this manually and it is still beneficial – but into days technical days we have it all done for you in our INSTANT BUSINESS MONITOR which by the way can be turned into a staff incentive in no time at all.
