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A Readout is a board of questions answered from your company’s data. Each block combines chosen data points, a calculation, a presentation and a comparison so you can check the figure and decide what to investigate.

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Start with a question

“Has our unfulfilled order count increased?” is more useful than adding a number without a purpose. Choose the source data, date range and comparison that answer the question. A template is a starting point; check its assumptions before relying on it. The block’s working should expose the expression and the values used. A figure drawn from two systems needs that distinction, because definitions can differ between providers.

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Missing data stays visible

A real zero is zero. A source that could not be read is unavailable. A figure covering only some of the expected data is partial. These states mean different things and need different next steps. Read the period label carefully. Readout dates use UTC calendar days; the reporting period may differ from a store’s local trading day.

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Sharing and Watches

A new Readout is private to its maker. Sharing moves it into the company context. Check the audience before sharing commercially sensitive information. Where a Watch is available, it responds to a threshold crossing by opening work to inspect. It does not grant permission to change a store. Unavailable data should not be treated as a numerical crossing.

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Create a Readout from a business question

You need an account that can create or edit Readouts and the data sources required for the question. A viewer can inspect a company-shared Readout; editing controls depend on role.
1

Make a board

Open Readouts and choose New Readout. Enter a name and select Make Readout. A new board starts private. You can also use a displayed template as a starting point.
2

Add one meaningful block

Choose Add block. Give it a title that states the question. Under Data points, choose the available inputs; add another only when the calculation requires it.
3

Check the maths and presentation

Use the input references shown by the editor to write the calculation. Choose Unit, Decimals and Show it as. Read Preview and resolve validation problems before Save block.
4

Set the comparison and dates

Under Compare with, choose Nothing, The period before or A target you set. Set whether bad news is up, down or neither. Use the Readout dates or give the block its own dates.
5

Decide who should see it

Keep Private for your own work or choose Team to share with your company. Check the audience before sharing sensitive commercial information.

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Worked example: contacts per 100 orders

Imagine a fictional period with 120 service contacts and 1,000 orders. Contacts divided by orders gives 0.12 contacts per order, or 12 contacts per 100 orders when multiplied by 100. State the unit explicitly; otherwise the same number can be misread as a percentage or a count. In the editor, use the references assigned to your chosen data points. Do not paste a guessed metric name. Read the preview and the calculation beside the figure. A previous-period comparison is useful only when the sources and duration are compatible. If the contact data covers one of two helpdesks, the figure is partial. It cannot be treated as the complete company’s contact rate. If the order source cannot be read, the complete calculation is unavailable. Neither case should become a zero.

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Set a threshold Watch

Where Watches are enabled, Tell me when it goes lets you set an Above or Below threshold. A Watch responds when the figure crosses the line and opens a work item; it does not keep producing new items merely because the number remains beyond it. An unavailable reading is not a crossing. Check the source problem before changing the threshold. The work item can lead to an investigation or proposal; it cannot itself authorise a store edit.

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If a block will not save or answer

Resolve the editor’s validation message first: the expression, input, unit or layout may be invalid. If the block saves but its figure is unavailable, inspect the coverage reason and connected source. A format change cannot repair missing evidence. Use the definition information for the block when you need its included records and exclusions. Reviewed 2 October 2026.