Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 14
Reports
There are no facts, only interpretations.
—Friedrich Nietzsche
For the business user, reports are the most critical outputs of the system.
For designers and developers, reports are rarely the most important aspect
to deliver. It is essential to recognize that reports have high visibility within
an organization. Management judges applications on the quality of the
reports generated, sometimes ignoring the complex back-end logic and
processing built into the system. The priority given to reports in systems
development needs to increase.
Reports also reveal something else. Various aspects of the management
styles that exist within an organization can be judged by the reports that
managers use in managing the business; the reports that get used, as well
as those that get ignored, can reveal what management considers important
in running the organization.
The History of Reporting
, which means
“carrying.” Reports “carry” information. They carry information from one
occasion, situation, or location to another. Like vessels and pipes that
store and transport fluids, reports come in all shapes and sizes. They
convey different things to different people. A good report is one that
The term “report” has within its Latin roots the word
portare
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