Why bosses don’t call their company reports cockpit?

Why bosses don’t call their company report cockpit? Instead, they use the name “dashboard”.

An airplane cockpit is very impressive. It has many dials and switches. It looks sophisticated.

A car dashboard is very simple with only a few indicators like the speedometer, fuel gauge, temperature gauge, distance, engine revolution, etc.

Between the 2, it is easier to understand the car dashboard. It is even simpler when we drive, we just need to look at the speedometer. As for the cockpit, there are simply too many things to look at. And it takes lots of time and effort to understand all the gauges and lights.

Similarly, when you create a company dashboard, do not aim for sophistication. Make it simple and easy to understand. Management does not have the patience to understand a complicated report.

Most of them prefer simple charts that they can understand quickly and discuss.

A sophisticated dashboard/cockpit only provides a short-lived impression which will fade away real soon. At the end of the day, what you could impress the management is their (not yours) understanding of your dashboard.

So make it simple and insightful. It will make your life easier too.