What managers must make the correct decisions (along with the common sense and nerve required) is information. Today, many managers feel they have way more information than they receive. On occasion this is often true, but in most cases today, the matter isn’t too little information. most information is obtainable that managers are overwhelmed, although they typically say they need plenty of knowledge to sort.
The fact is that management information service (MIS) groups provide an overabundance of information. Piles of computer printouts on office desks are common sights. Companies also store an abundance of information on their main computer drives and servers. A successful manager knows what data to extract from the reams of information available in print or stored in hardware.
Comparing the reams of computer printouts to a smorgasbord dinner may be a good analogy. You don’t eat everything you see at a smorgasbord; you select a mix of food and beverage that suits your needs at the instant. If you walk down a smorgasbord line, you’ll choose a joint sandwich, a bit salad, and maybe a diet soda. some other person will make other choices. The person who tries to pick everything appears to not know what his best choices are.
The same principal applies to information in business. You work most efficiently after you can select a mix of knowledge that fills your needs at that moment. If you’ve got information that will be employed by people, shift it to them for his or her use, especially if they work for you. In summary, knowing what the required information is and how to use it works much more efficiently than having an abundance of information that’s not sorted properly and is thus not useful.
Cause and Effect
In sorting data, it’s important to comprehend if there’s a cause and effect relationship between the info. this can be named as a causal relationship.
This is to not be confused with an informal relationship where X only causes Y to occur once in an exceedingly while. When X regularly causes Y then it’s a causal relationship; X and Y represent cause and effect.
Note the difference within the two words—causal and casual.
Here is an example of how some top managers may be misled.
Convenience stores throughout the globe belong to large chains or are small independent operations. an outsized chain within the Middle Atlantic section of the u. s. recently installed sandwich counters where they prepare take-out sandwiches within the belief that this measure will increase sales.
During visits to the current store, I observed that the sandwiches are made to order and thus take several minutes to arrange. the typical sandwich price is about $7. the typical shopping order is $14 to $18 for purchases like milk, fruit juice, cheese, etc. Rarely did a customer buy a take-out sandwich and rehearse the aisles to search out other items.
Customers who bought sandwiches and beverages usually left the shop.
The chain didn’t hire extra staff for the sandwich counter. Cashiers were required to test customers out and make sandwiches. Sandwich customers were asked what reasonably cheese they wanted, whether or not they wanted red or green peppers, onions, mushrooms, etc. Customers waiting at the cashier station to shop for other items frequently returned the things to the shelves or just put them on the counter and left the shop.
In a discussion with a regional supervisor, I asked how the sandwich counter was doing and also the reply was that it boosted sales about 1 to 1.5%. The supervisor thought the installation of sandwich counters was good because, for unexplained reasons, regular store sales were down about 3%. In fact, the sandwich counter caused regular sales to decrease. A computer printout and a mountain of information wouldn’t have revealed that fact. in fact the supervisor believes the sandwich counter was an honest idea because he read the information. However, the activity at the shop clearly revealed a cause-and-effect relationship that should have led to a call to rent more help or close the sandwich counter. This shows how good managers must see what’s actually going on in their operations rather than only reading data.
Another example could be a case where a salesman for an imaginary product plots the quantity of customer calls against the degree of sales made. If doubling his number of calls doubles his sales and thus doubles his income, we are able to assume a cause-and-effect relationship, but only if no third event is put into motion at the identical time. as an example, a television campaign launched when the salesperson doubled his calls must even be considered an element. The increased number of sales calls are often credited with the sales increase providing all other factors remained constant. Whenever you compare data, you must ask whether one set of information causes another set or whether the second set was caused by a 3rd event or factor.
