Where the four hours go
Sample figures to show the format. Four hours down to ten minutes of review is 199 hours a year, about five working weeks.
Same question, two answers
Revenue was $412K, up 8% week over week. Conversion improved to 2.9%. Consider increasing ad spend on your top performers.
Gross sales from the platform, week over week, no plan and no prior year. Advice nobody asked for.
Net revenue was $388K, 3% over plan and up 14% on last year's comparable week, shifted for the holiday. Gross margin held at 64%. The gain is all returning customers from Tuesday's email. New-customer revenue was 6% under plan for the third week running, which is the thing to talk about. Two top sellers drop under four weeks of supply by month end.
Net revenue, against plan and the comparable week, your margin definition, and the one issue leadership needs to hear.
What the model has to learn
- Your definitions. Net revenue, gross margin, new versus returning customer, and what counts as a sale on a marketplace.
- Your calendar. Fiscal weeks, a 4-5-4 retail calendar if you use one, and how to line up last year's holidays.
- What leadership cares about. The three or four numbers that start every Monday conversation, and the thresholds that make something worth mentioning.
- Your voice. Commentary written the way your leadership team already reads it, short and in your words.
How it runs every week
Early Monday the model pulls the week's numbers, compares them to plan and last year, and drafts the recap with commentary. The person who owns the recap today reviews it, edits anything that needs a human read, and sends it. Ten minutes instead of a morning. They still own it, and nothing goes out without them.
This is often the first workflow built during an operations audit. The same model then handles the field exam package, the month-end close pack and the returns read, because it already knows how your business defines the numbers.
Related
Questions
Which tools does it work with?
The ones you already use: Shopify, your ad and email platforms, NetSuite or QuickBooks, Google Sheets for the plan, and Slack or email for delivery. Nothing new for your team to learn.
Our plan lives in a spreadsheet. Is that a problem?
No. Most brands this size plan in a spreadsheet. The model reads it as the source of truth for plan and compares actuals to it every week.
Does this replace our analyst?
No. It removes the copying and pasting, so your analyst spends Monday on why the numbers moved instead of on moving them.
How long does it take to set up?
It is usually the first workflow built during a two to three week audit, because it has the most hours behind it.