Phase 4 – Report and Communicate Insight

Purpose

• Present validated performance data in a form that informs, engages, and empowers decision-makers

Objectives

• Design reports tailored to the needs of specific roles and forums

• Apply narrative to highlight meaning, patterns, and risks

• Define thresholds, trends, and triggers that support action and governance

• Balance operational and strategic perspectives in communication

Inputs

• Validated metric data from Phase 3

• Strategic and operational performance questions from Phase 1

• Organisational governance structures and reporting cadences

Outputs

• Role-specific dashboards or scorecards

• Performance briefings or narrative reports

• Communication plans and reporting cycles

• Trigger logs for action or escalation

Tools and Techniques

• Insight Narrative Builder: Combines metric data with context and commentary

• Report Persona Matrix: Maps what each role needs to know and how to present it

• Threshold and Trend Visuals: Use traffic lights, sparklines, and tolerance bands

• Data Storytelling Frameworks: Highlight what, so what, and now what

• Governance Reporting Packs: Tailored artefacts for steering, review, and escalation forums

Step 1: Understand the Audience

• Use the Report Persona Matrix to define audiences: what they care about, their decision scope, and data fluency

• Identify governance forums (e.g. ops reviews, board reports, service reviews)

Step 2: Define the Insight Objectives

• Is the report meant to monitor, escalate, reflect, predict, or propose?

• Match objectives to formats: dashboards for monitoring, decks for storytelling, scorecards for assurance

Step 3: Build the Narrative

• Use the Insight Narrative Builder to combine:

  • Headline metrics

  • Comparative or historical trends

  • Interpretation (what changed and why)

  • Recommended actions or questions

Step 4: Design the Report Artefact

• Use data visualisation principles: simplify, declutter, highlight insight

• Include contextual commentary and action prompts

• Highlight thresholds, tolerances, or breaches

Step 5: Review, Refine, and Publish

• Share with internal reviewers to test for clarity and value

• Align language and visuals to the maturity of the audience

• Schedule into performance reporting or decision cycles

• Tailor reporting to personas, not just roles — executives and service managers need different views

• Always pair data with commentary. Insight dies in silence

• Use thresholds and triggers to make reporting actionable, not just descriptive

• Avoid report sprawl — consolidate where possible and refresh only what’s needed

• Iterate. Great reporting evolves through stakeholder feedback

• Weekly performance emails for team leaders

• Quarterly portfolio dashboards for governance boards

• Real-time operational dashboards for incident or flow monitoring

• Post-project XLAs with narrative commentary on experience metrics

• Monthly trend reporting highlighting service volatility and hotspots

• COBIT (MEA01/EDM05): Supports stakeholder reporting, assurance, and performance governance

• ITIL (Monitoring & Reporting): Aligns with service reporting and continual improvement

• Agile/DevOps: Enables flow metrics, velocity, and throughput visibility

• Balanced Scorecard: Supports multi-perspective reporting (financial, customer, process, learning)

• Experience & Outcomes: Ensures reporting reflects stakeholder-centric measures

• Governance & Alignment: Aligns insight to governance processes and decision forums

• People & Empowerment: Builds understanding and confidence in interpreting insight