A weekly review that leads to decisions

Begin with the decisions

Ask what you need to decide during the next week: staffing coverage, purchasing, customer follow-up, maintenance or cash priorities. Select information that informs those decisions. A collection of attractive charts is not useful if nobody can explain the action a change should trigger.

Use consistent definitions. Booked work, completed work, invoices and cash collected describe different stages. Comparing them without clarity can create a false impression of demand or available money. An accountant can help align operational reporting with financial records.

Give exceptions an owner

Review significant departures from the plan and assign a person, next action and due date. Keep the discussion specific: which process failed, what evidence is available and what needs to change. Avoid using a single week’s result to declare a broad trend.

Where franchisor reporting is required, maintain the specified process. Your own operating review can add context, but it should not silently replace required reporting or use incompatible definitions.

Close the previous week’s actions

Start each meeting by checking unresolved commitments. If an action repeatedly slips, investigate whether the person has the authority, resources or information needed. A useful review creates a memory for the business and a way to learn from exceptions. Its value lies in reliable decisions and follow-through, not the amount of data displayed.

Put it on paper

• Link each measure to a decision.
• Define terms and reporting periods consistently.
• Track action owners and due dates.

Continue with the franchise research checklist, our FDD guide, and the research directory.