Our managers complain that pulling the data for their weekly scorecard takes them hours every Monday morning because our systems do not talk to each other. How do we reduce the friction of data collection without letting them off the hook for updating their numbers?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

If pulling scorecard data takes hours every Monday morning, your metrics are too complex or your systems are bloated. A weekly scorecard number should take no more than five minutes to retrieve. If it requires massive manual spreadsheet manipulation, you need to simplify the metric or delegate the data collection to a supporting seat on your Accountability Chart. The owner of the metric is still fully accountable for the number being accurate and submitted on time for the Level 10 Meeting, but they do not have to be the one who physically runs the query. Keep it simple and focused. If a metric is too difficult to track weekly, it is probably a lagging indicator that belongs on a monthly report instead. Do not let data collection friction become an excuse for empty scorecard rows. Clean up your tracking processes so your team can focus on analyzing the numbers rather than hunting for them. Your weekly meeting should be spent solving problems, not gathering data.