Readable reports built on numbers you can verify.

Start with a shared definition of the measure.

An open-requests report might count incoming cases, unresolved tickets or assigned activities: three different numbers. Agree the meaning of each metric, period, filters, source and owner before automating it. A percentage also needs a defined denominator and a rule for when that denominator is zero.

Calculations should be reproducible in the agreed data layer, rather than asking a language model to reconstruct totals from prose. AI can explain precomputed changes and suggest questions to investigate. It should not turn an observed association into a demonstrated cause.

Worked scenario: a weekly support summary.

Illustrative scenario: an operations owner needs to understand which requests are stuck and where to intervene. The report states its period, data freshness and inclusion rules before presenting a short commentary. Waiting requests increased differs from the team became less productive: the second conclusion needs additional evidence.

Scroll the table to compare all columns.

Combine sources without multiplying the records.

Joining tickets, activities and contacts can multiply rows when a case has several activities. Define what one row represents in each source and how sources relate. Reconcile counts and totals against a reference before introducing a narrative. Include time zones and currency conventions if the report spans countries.

Microsoft’s Power BI guidance distinguishes facts, dimensions and granularity. These concepts help avoid inconsistent aggregation; the implementation may use different tools. Tool selection depends on the data model, available access and the people who will maintain the reporting process.

A possible report-preparation workflow.

1. 01

   Define one report and its audience

   Choose the decision the report supports, the necessary metrics and its cadence. Resist adding indicators with no identifiable operational use.

2. 02

   Calculate and validate

   Prepare extraction and transformation with missing-data, duplicate, period and total checks. When a source is stale, show the limitation or hold the report for review.

3. 03

   Prepare a commentary draft

   Give the AI approved results and definitions. Each observation must connect to a number or a source. Label hypotheses and unanswered questions explicitly.

4. 04

   Approve and distribute

   An owner performs the agreed review and authorises any distribution. Recipients, permissions and version retention belong in the scope, rather than occurring automatically as a side effect of text generation.

Check whether the reporting project is ready.

If two departments currently disagree on the total, adding an AI commentary will not settle the discrepancy. Reconcile the definitions first. A deterministic template may be sufficient for a short, stable report. Add AI where it helps summarise genuinely variable information and where the review effort remains proportionate.

• Metrics have approved definitions and a responsible owner.
• A reference exists against which to reconcile at least one period.
• The report distinguishes current, incomplete and non-comparable data.
• Readers can trace a conclusion to the supporting figures.

Practical questions