I am told that many of you humans are entertained by a film called “Office Space” and particularly by something in it called “TPS Reports.” Apparently the connection so many of you feel has something to do with having received reports that just don’t matter. Where I get this is that some people have said that “TPS” stands for “Totally Pointless Stuff” or “The Patently Stupid” report.
While we computers would love to help you avoid having the reports you create become TPS reports, we just can’t. We are really good at processing information. We can aggregate it, chart it, format it, and output it through a variety of media, but we can’t make sure it will be meaningful to the people who receive it. That takes a human.
Several of the links at the end of this edition are about how to make sure your reports don’t become Totally Pointless Stuff. A few of the points that seemed logical to me are:
- Make the scope of the report clear. Does it cover specific dates or products?
- While your human reader will most likely read the summary first, it should be one of the last sections you complete.
Make sure the parts of your report are clearly labeled so your human readers can find the information that interests them quickly.
