Field guide
A working library for clearer data decisions.
Five connected guides on the choices behind an operational view. Follow the reading order, or start with the issue you are trying to understand.
From the row
to the routine.
Begin with the unit of a record, then examine how it becomes a measure and a time-based comparison. The final guide considers what happens when another person takes responsibility for the result.
Examples are fictional teaching material. These guides explain technology design choices and are not claims about customer projects or company performance.
Count the thing you mean to count.
A request, an item, and a status event can all appear as rows. Establishing the grain of each table prevents a surprisingly common source of misleading totals.
02 /A percentage needs its population beside it.
A rate can change because its numerator changes, its denominator changes, or both. Keep the eligible population visible when using percentages to compare operational activity.
03 /Choose which clock your report follows.
Event time, arrival time, calendar boundaries, and point-in-time snapshots can produce different answers from the same records. Make the time basis part of the definition.
04 /A change in a line is a question to investigate.
A chart makes movement visible. Interpretation still needs the scale, comparison period, population, and operational context behind that movement.
05 /Leave instructions for the next ordinary Tuesday.
A useful handover explains how a data view is kept current, how a problem is recognized, and who can change its definition. It should work after the original conversation is forgotten.