I’m really looking forward to this series and agree that a dashboard can be a very valuable management tool indeed.

But …

“What Gets Measured Gets Managed” can be frighteningly true. Sometimes it is more like “What CAN BE measured gets managed.”

Likewise the inverse - “What gets managed gets measured”.

Now I’m sure it is possible to build a Dashboard as a useful exercise in Dashboard building for any variation of the circumstances and related data implied above. Which is fine but may not be useful in the longer term. At worst it could be very dangerous for the health of the business.

So I think it is worth stressing how important it is for Dashboard builders to consider how they might also take on the role of ‘data value arbiter’ within their business culture. Of course this may entail co-opting a suitable senior manager to be supportive enough to make the defining decisions. Upward delegation I think it is called …

A depth gauge might be useful in a submarine but less obviously so in the cab of a truck on the highway. Unless, of course, the Satnav maps have inbuilt errors and the road does not quite go where the mapping system says it does …

And now, back to the project in progress.

Grant