A connected decision sequence

Use the guides in the order that matches your current decision. Keep the evidence, approval, and next action connected as work moves between the board, management, vendors, and specialists.

  1. Choose the appropriate geography and periodIs this a definition library or an observed statistic?
  2. Define the metric and its denominatorAre the geographies and periods comparable?
  3. Reconcile evidence before interpreting a trendCould a changed denominator explain the result?

Guides in this topic

Build the decision record

For the issue in front of you, name the responsible sponsor, collect the current source records, list material gaps, and identify the acceptance test. Retain a version of the evidence used at the decision date so later changes remain explainable.

These resources provide operational frameworks. Property-specific technical conclusions, deadlines, funding authority, and coverage decisions need the applicable records and appropriate professional review.

Explore the resource library

Need help connecting the evidence and the decision?

Discuss a focused review

Define the measure before interpreting results

Check ownership, geography, period, units, inclusions and revisions. The regional dashboard contains historical observations; the KPI library defines suggested measures. Neither establishes a finding about an individual property.

Interpretation checks

  • County medians cannot be pooled by averaging them. Pooled rates need their underlying denominators.
  • A reviewed date is an editorial check, not the observation date or proof of the newest release.
  • Name the unit, denominator, reference period and source of record before calculating a trend. If two reports disagree, trace one example back to its source before combining their totals.

Questions for this decision area

How should missing data appear?

Keep unavailable values separate from zero and not-applicable items. State the missing input and preserve that distinction downstream.

Is a KPI definition a benchmark?

No. This library defines calculations and evidence. It does not provide observed industry targets or universal thresholds.

Follow a connected review · Check terminology

Evidence at each handoff

What permits the next step?

A task being finished does not establish that its output is ready for the next team. Use these checkpoints to keep the evidence, responsibility and release condition connected.

  1. Define the question

    Record to obtain
    Decision purpose, eligible population and measurement boundary
    Suggested coordination role
    Data owner
    Check before release
    Requested measure fits the decision and permitted use
  2. Reconcile the inputs

    Record to obtain
    Source version, missingness, duplicate identities and corrections
    Suggested coordination role
    Data preparer
    Check before release
    Lineage and unresolved quality exceptions retained
  3. Test comparability

    Record to obtain
    Units, periods, geography, denominator and method
    Suggested coordination role
    Analytical reviewer
    Check before release
    Unsupported comparisons excluded or clearly bounded
  4. Release the interpretation

    Record to obtain
    Reproducible calculation and privacy-limited supporting record
    Suggested coordination role
    Report approver
    Check before release
    Observation separated from inference and future assumptions

Proposed operating workflow, not a universal legal sequence. Confirm authority, professional requirements and permitted parallel work for your property.

Work through a decision in this area

Use this when a KPI changes unexpectedly or two reports appear to disagree.

Hypothetical example: Two hypothetical reports show 80% and 90% completion, but one excludes waiting jobs. The brief records each eligible population, source period and status rule before interpreting the difference as performance.

What would demonstrate closure?

Retain the formula, eligible population, source period, exclusions and reconciliation. Repeat the calculation from the same records; a dashboard label alone does not establish comparability.

Review the decision brief structure
A number, its evidence and the decision

Keep the denominator attached to a result

A percentage can change because the event count changed, the population changed or the definition changed. Show the numerator, denominator and period before describing a trend.

  1. Definition

    State the event and eligible population.

  2. Source

    Identify the authoritative records and period.

  3. Calculation

    Apply the same unit and denominator.

  4. Interpretation

    Check selection effects and missing records.

A worked example with visible assumptions

A fictional survey receives 47 unique valid household responses from 120 eligible households invited. The response rate is 39.2% after rounding. It describes participation in this survey, not the opinion of every resident. Multiple responses from one household require a defined reconciliation rule.

Original hypothetical arithmetic example. The amounts describe a fictional scenario, not observed property performance or a recommended target.

Continue with Comparing Property Data Without Misleading Conclusions

Explore the calculation

Enter non-negative values using the same scope and period. This calculation stays in your browser tab.

Use the example values or enter your own, then calculate.

Counts can add; rates need weights

Separate, non-overlapping counts for the same period can be added. Rates need their denominators; medians cannot be pooled by averaging them.

Label the geography

The Tampa metropolitan area and Hillsborough–Pinellas county pair are different populations. Keep their measures separate.

Preserve the observation period

An editorial update does not make an old observation new. Keep provisional status, survey period and publication date visible. Run the same definition on both populations before ranking results. If one source counts tickets and the other counts buildings, keep the figures separate until a documented mapping exists; a common percentage format does not make the units comparable.