What Is Operational Reporting? Examples & Best Practices

Operational reporting is one of the simplest—and most powerful—ways to turn everyday business activity into actionable insight. Whether you’re a business owner, a department leader, or a new data analyst, understanding operational reporting can help you make quicker, better decisions with the data you already have.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through what operational reporting is, how it works, and how to use it effectively in your organization.

What is operational reporting?

Operational reporting is the process of collecting, organizing, and analyzing real-time or near real-time data from business operations to support day-to-day decision-making. Unlike strategic reporting, which focuses on long-term goals, operational reports are tactical.

Operational reports answer questions like:

• How many orders were shipped today?
• What’s the current inventory level?
• How long is our customer service response time?

These reports provide an up-to-date snapshot of performance across specific processes or teams. Frontline staff, team managers, and department heads often use them to monitor performance and take immediate action when needed.

Why does operational reporting matter?

For any business that wants to be more data-driven, operational reporting is a must-have.

Here’s what operational reporting provides:

• Timely insights
  Operational reports give you access to current data—hourly, daily, or in real time. That means you can catch problems early, respond to changes faster, and keep performance on track.
• Informed decision-making
  When your teams have visibility into what’s happening right now, they can make smarter decisions. Operational reporting removes guesswork from tasks like staffing, inventory planning, or customer support.
• Improved accountability
  Reports help clarify who’s doing what and how well they’re doing it. With clear metrics and benchmarks, your team members understand expectations—and can track their own progress.
• Better resource management
  Operational reports often reveal inefficiencies, delays, or resource bottlenecks. That’s valuable for streamlining your workflows, allocating staff, or adjusting timelines on the fly.

Real-world examples of operational reporting

Operational reporting becomes most impactful when you can see how it solves problems in real business contexts. The following examples show how teams across industries use real-time insights to improve performance, make faster decisions, and create value.

Retail operations: Philz Coffee

Challenge: Store leaders were spending more than 16 hours a month compiling manual reports from disconnected systems.

Solution: Philz Coffee used Domo to unify its in-store and mobile systems into a single dashboard that updates in real time. Store managers now monitor performance metrics and customer satisfaction without needing end-of-day reports.

Key metrics tracked:

• Hourly and daily sales
• Mobile order volume
• Customer sentiment
• Shift-level performance

Results:

• Eliminated 16+ hours of manual reporting each month
• Enabled managers to make faster operational decisions
• Improved consistency in customer experience

“With Domo, our team isn’t just reacting—we’re planning and adjusting in the moment.”—Operations Director, Philz Coffee

Logistics and supply chain: DHL

Challenge: DHL needed to monitor ambient temperature conditions for sensitive shipments but had a seven-day delay in data processing.

Solution: Using Domo, DHL implemented real-time dashboards that track temperature data and route performance as shipments move through the supply chain.

Key metrics tracked:

• Real-time temperature monitoring
• Shipment scan times
• Route performance
• Compliance alert thresholds

Results:

• Enabled real-time issue detection and intervention
• Protected sensitive shipments from spoilage
• Enhanced operational transparency for leadership

“Domo gave us eyes on our supply chain like never before.”—Global Analytics Lead, DHL

Retail expansion: 7-Eleven Vietnam

Challenge: Operational data was siloed across inventory, point-of-sale, and supply systems, making it difficult to scale efficiently.

Solution: Domo provided a centralized platform that connected all data sources, allowing 7‑Eleven Vietnam to manage store performance and inventory in real time.

Key metrics tracked:

• SKU-level sales by store
• Out-of-stock frequency
• Promotion effectiveness
• Supplier delivery timelines

Results:

• Reduced stockouts and overstocking
• Streamlined supply chain coordination
• Improved product availability across stores

“Domo helped us standardize and scale fast. We can now see performance by location in real time.”—Director of Operations, 7-Eleven Vietnam

Other examples of operational reporting

Operational reporting has many different business uses and can be applied across nearly every team. Here are a few hypothetical examples that show how different departments could use operational reporting to solve specific challenges.

Sales team

A regional sales leader needs to monitor sales performance across multiple reps and territories. Without operational reporting, it’s difficult to know which deals are stuck in the pipeline or which reps are falling behind their targets. A real-time dashboard allows the sales leader to quickly spot trends, reassign leads, or provide coaching in the moment—rather than after the quarter ends.

Key metrics to track:

• Daily sales volume by rep or region
• Pipeline-to-quota ratio
• Opportunity age and stage progression
• Lead response time
• Win/loss rates

Customer support

A customer support team wants to maintain service level agreements (SLAs) during a period of high-ticket volume. But without real-time insight, they can’t see which queues are backed up or which agents are overwhelmed. An operational report showing live ticket status and agent activity helps the support manager shift resources dynamically and prevent SLA breaches.

Key metrics to track:

• Ticket volume by channel
• Average first-response time
• Time to resolution
• CSAT and NPS scores
• Active tickets by agent

Marketing

The marketing team is running several campaigns across email, paid social, and web. They need to understand what’s working—and what’s not—before the budget is spent. Operational dashboards let them track campaign performance in real time and adjust creative, targeting, or spend strategy while the campaign is still running.

Key metrics to track:

• Cost per click (CPC) and cost per acquisition (CPA)
• Campaign-level conversion rates
• Engagement by channel
• Email open and click-through rates
• Web traffic by source

Finance

The finance team is responsible for monitoring cash flow and spending across departments. Month-end reports are useful, but they don’t help when the budget is already off track. With operational reporting, finance can keep a real-time view of key financial indicators and notify department heads if costs start trending outside of expectations.

Key metrics to track:

• Daily or weekly spend by department
• Budget vs actual comparisons
• Cash flow trends
• Aged receivables and payables
• Variance analysis

Human resources

HR wants to improve employee retention and spot potential engagement issues early. Rather than waiting for annual reviews or lagging exit interviews, they use operational dashboards to track workforce health in real time. This allows them to take proactive steps—like checking in with high-turnover teams or adjusting onboarding programs.

Key metrics to track:

• New hire attrition
• Turnover by team or manager
• Training completion rates
• Time to fill open roles
• Internal mobility and promotion rates

IT and security

An IT team is responsible for managing infrastructure uptime and ensuring system reliability. During a software rollout, they need to monitor system logs, access rates, and incident tickets as they happen. Operational reporting gives the team early warning signs so they can prevent issues before they escalate into outages.

Key metrics to track:

• System uptime and response times
• Number of open incidents
• Time to resolution for IT tickets
• Log-in errors or failed authentications
• Security alert volume

How operational reporting differs from other reporting types

To get the most from your data, it helps to know how operational reporting fits into the bigger picture.

Operational Reports

• Focus: Day-to-day performance
• Timeframe: Real-time or daily
• Audience: Frontline teams
• Purpose: Help teams monitor and improve ongoing processes, track immediate KPIs, and identify daily issues as they arise.

Tactical Reports

• Focus: Departmental goals and actions
• Timeframe: Weekly or monthly
• Audience: Managers
• Purpose: Support decision-making at the team or departmental level, allowing managers to adjust workflows, allocate resources, or evaluate campaign progress.

Strategic Reports

• Focus: Long-term outcomes and trends
• Timeframe: Quarterly or annual
• Audience: Executives
• Purpose: Inform high-level planning and strategic decision-making, such as market expansion, budget allocation, or product roadmap adjustments.

Analytical Reports

• Focus: Deep dives and root cause analysis
• Timeframe: Varies based on the project or problem
• Audience: Analysts
• Purpose: Explore trends, diagnose issues, and uncover insights that can shape both tactical and strategic decisions. These reports often require advanced tools and methods.

Best practices for operational reporting

Operational reports are meant to make your job easier, not more complicated. But if they’re cluttered, outdated, or designed without the right context, they can cause confusion or go unused. These best practices can help you create clear, useful reports that drive action across your team.

Start with a clear purpose

Before building a report, define the specific decision it should support. Is it for tracking daily sales performance? Monitoring open tickets? Managing inventory levels? Keeping the goal front and center will help you stay focused on the data that matters most.

Choose the right metrics

Not every data point needs to be on the dashboard. Choose metrics that are measurable, timely, and directly tied to operational goals. If a metric isn’t actionable or understandable to your audience, it probably doesn’t belong in an operational report.

Keep it clean and visual

Use charts, graphs, and tables that make trends and issues easy to spot at a glance. Avoid 3D effects, overcomplicated visuals, or crowded layouts. The simpler your design, the faster people can understand it—and act on it.

Use filters and drill-downs to reduce clutter

Rather than creating multiple reports for different teams or views, use filters and drill paths. This allows users to see just the data that’s relevant to them while keeping your dashboard streamlined and easy to manage.

Design for mobile and on-the-go use

If your team works in the field, on a sales floor, or across multiple sites, chances are they’ll need to check reports from a phone or tablet. Keep text minimal, use responsive layouts, and prioritize high-impact metrics at the top.

Assign ownership and governance

Every report should have an owner—someone responsible for updating data connections, reviewing content, and making sure the report stays relevant. This reduces duplication, ensures accuracy, and builds trust in the data.

Set a review cadence

Just like business needs evolve, your reports should, too. Set regular check-ins (monthly or quarterly) to review each report’s effectiveness. Ask questions like: Are people still using it? Are the metrics still aligned with our goals? What could we simplify or improve?

Involve stakeholders from the start

Build reports with your audience, not just for them. Talk to end users before you start designing. What do they need to know each day? How do they prefer to consume data? Getting feedback early leads to better adoption later.

Manage access intentionally

Not everyone needs to see everything. Think carefully about who should have view-only access, who needs to interact with filters, and who can make edits. Set permissions that keep sensitive data secure and reduce the risk of accidental changes.

Tell a story, not just the numbers

Operational reporting isn’t just about displaying data—it’s about making it understandable and actionable. Use headers, annotations, or light commentary to guide viewers through what they’re seeing. If the data is surprising, provide context.

Getting started with operational reporting

Getting started with operational reporting doesn’t require a technical background or advanced tools. You can build something valuable with just a clear question and a few data points. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you move from idea to impact—even if you’re just starting out.

Step 1: Define your goal

Start with one question you want regularly answered. That could be:

• How many support tickets are still open?
• How are today’s sales pacing toward the goal?
• What’s our current inventory of top-selling items?

Keep it simple. Operational reporting is about clarity, not complexity. You’re trying to solve a problem or make a decision faster with data.

Step 2: Talk to your team

If others will be using the report, ask them what they need. What are they currently tracking? What’s missing? A quick conversation can reveal insights that help you design something useful from day one.

Step 3: Identify your data sources

Think about where the needed data lives:

• Your CRM for sales or customer data
• A help desk platform for support ticket metrics
• Spreadsheets, POS systems, or inventory software

You don’t need to connect everything all at once. Start with one or two high-impact sources that are already being used and trusted.

Step 4: Choose your key metrics

Focus on a small number of metrics that align directly with your goal. For example:

• Sales per day
• Response time by agent
• Inventory by SKU

Avoid trying to measure everything at once. You can always add more later as you learn what’s most useful.

Step 5: Build a simple dashboard

Use a dashboard tool like Domo to bring your metrics together in one place. Choose clear, visual formats—like bar charts, gauges, or tables—and organize your layout by priority. The most important metrics should go at the top.

If you’re not sure where to begin, Domo’s Appstore offers prebuilt dashboard templates by function and industry.

Step 6: Share it and get feedback

Once your report is live, share it with your team or manager and ask:

• Is this helping you do your job faster or better?
• Is anything missing?
• What’s confusing or hard to interpret?

Use this feedback to refine your dashboard and build buy-in with your team.

Step 7: Schedule regular updates

Set your report to update automatically—or pick a regular cadence to review the data. If the numbers change throughout the day, a real-time feed is ideal. If they change more slowly, a daily or weekly report might be enough.

Bonus Tip: Don’t overthink it

You don’t need to be a data expert to start using operational reports. You don’t need to track 25 metrics or automate everything from day one. Start with something small that helps your team make one better decision. That’s enough to build momentum.

How Domo can help

Domo makes operational reporting easy—even if you’re new to data. With Domo, you can:

• Connect to hundreds of data sources without code
• Build dashboards that update in real time
• Set alerts for when metrics move outside your target range
• Share reports across teams and devices (desktop or mobile)

And because Domo is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, it’s perfect for business leaders and data beginners alike.

Operational reporting is about giving your team the right data at the right time to make the right decisions. It’s not about being flashy—it’s about being useful.

Start with a simple report that answers one important question. Then, build from there. Over time, operational reporting will become the heartbeat of your business: always on, always moving, and always helping you get better.

Ready to get started?
Try Domo for free or watch a demo to see how easy operational reporting can be.