Audit the recurring reports first
Before building anything, list every report that is produced on a schedule. For each, record who builds it, how long it takes, who reads it, what decision it informs and which sources it uses. You will usually find that several reports overlap, some are read by no one, and a few carry decisions that matter.
- Retire reports nobody acts on before automating them.
- Merge reports that answer the same question for different people.
- Prioritise the report that is most frequent, most painful to build and most relied on.
- Note which reports need sign-off before they leave the building.
Source systems and access
Sources are typically a CRM, spreadsheets, an accounting or finance tool, an operations system and sometimes advertising or web analytics. For each, confirm how data can be read automatically: an interface, a scheduled export or a database connection. Spreadsheets deserve special care — they are easy to read but also easy for a person to change a column name and break the flow. Where a spreadsheet is a real source of truth, agree who maintains its structure. We check what each system actually offers during scoping rather than assuming a connector.
Define each metric once
Most reporting arguments are definition arguments. Write down each metric: what it counts, what it excludes, the date it is measured against, the time window and the source field. 'New leads', 'won revenue' and 'active customers' each hide a dozen choices. Store the definitions where the report can display them, so a reader can see exactly what a number means.
Example: 'won this week'
Decide whether it is measured by close date or by payment date, whether reopened deals count again, which currency applies and whether test or internal records are excluded. Each choice changes the number, and only a written definition keeps it stable.
Refresh and scheduling
Choose refresh timing by how the report is used. A weekly management report may be built early on Monday from a snapshot, so the numbers do not change under the reader mid-meeting. A live view suits day-to-day operations. Keep snapshots of past periods so last month's report still shows last month's numbers even if source data is later corrected, and mark clearly when a figure has been restated.
Dashboard or emailed report
A dashboard suits people who explore and ask follow-up questions. An emailed or shared document suits people who want a fixed summary and will not log in anywhere. Many teams need both: a short delivered summary that links to a dashboard for detail. If reports go to owners or investors, a fixed document with a stable snapshot is often better than a live view. The dashboard development service covers the dashboard side when a custom one is warranted.
Exceptions and alerts
Automation should also tell you when something is wrong with the data, not only present it. Add checks such as a source that returned nothing, a metric that moved outside a range you define, or a required field missing on many records. Those checks should notify a named person and mark the report so nobody presents suspect numbers as final. We make no promises about your data quality; the checks are there to expose problems early so someone can fix them.
Ownership
Assign one owner for each report and one for the metric definitions. Without an owner, definitions drift, sources change and the automation quietly starts reporting the wrong thing. Agree how changes are requested, who approves a new metric and how you are told when a source system changes.
How LATYNEX scopes this
If the scope is one report flow across up to three systems, it can fit the fixed-scope Automation Sprint (€1,690). Several reports, many sources or a custom dashboard is quoted as custom scope after we see your data. To check whether reporting is your best first automation, use the Automation Opportunity Finder. The related service is dashboard development.
Questions
Can you automate reports that come from spreadsheets?+
Often yes, provided the spreadsheet structure is stable and someone owns it. We confirm during scoping how the file can be read reliably.
Will automated numbers match what we report today?+
Only if the definitions match. The build starts by writing each metric down, and differences from the current manual report are investigated, not hidden.
Do we need a dashboard or is an emailed report enough?+
If readers want a fixed weekly summary, a delivered report is enough. If they need to explore, add a dashboard. Many teams use a short summary that links to one.
What happens when a source system changes?+
Checks flag a failed or unexpected result and notify the owner. Someone still needs to update the mapping, which is why ownership is part of the design.
Can this fix bad data in our CRM?+
No. It exposes gaps sooner. Cleaning the data is a separate task, and a good report makes it visible what needs cleaning.