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Which BUSY report to automate first
Most businesses have more reports they could automate than time to set them up. Four questions help you pick the one to start with.
Facts reviewed on
Four questions
- How often is it prepared by hand? A report someone builds every day is a better start than one built once a quarter.
- Who waits for it? Reports that people outside the accounts team need — salesmen, branch managers, customers — save the most back-and-forth.
- How fresh must it be? If “as of the last 10–15 minutes” is fine, Cloud mode can answer even when the PC is off; if it must be live, it needs the PC.
- What happens if it is wrong or goes to the wrong person? Start with reading and sharing inside the business; leave messages to customers and postings into BUSY for later.
Typical first choices
Illustrative examples — not customer cases
A distributor starts with pending bills per salesman in a shared sheet. A retailer starts with each branch’s day-end summary. A manufacturer starts with the monthly inventory daybook. A wholesaler starts with price lists for its ordering app.
Each of these reads data only, is needed often, and is seen by people inside the business first.
Then build on it
Once the first report runs reliably, the next step is often a reminder or a posting. Both have real effects outside the report, so they get their own care: see testing scripts before you activate them and the payment reminder checklist.