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Description

Operational Dashboards: Selecting Indicators, Building and Driving Reviews

Build a dashboard that operational managers genuinely use to make decisions

  • 2 days — 14 h
  • In-person or virtual
  • Intermediate
  • Up to 6 participants

Many dashboards accumulate indicators inherited from the history of the systems rather than from real management needs. They arrive late, nobody comments on them and decisions are taken elsewhere. The management controller then spends more time producing figures than making sure they are used.

These two days address the design and the driving of an operational dashboard: identifying action levers, selecting and defining indicators, presenting them clearly, controlling production lead times and establishing a review routine. Each participant works on a scope they actually manage.

Learning objectives

  • Identify the action levers specific to an operational scope
  • Select a limited number of indicators linked to those levers
  • Define the calculation method and the data source for each indicator retained
  • Present a dashboard that is clear and decision-oriented
  • Lead the performance review and follow up on action plans

What makes this programme different

Each participant leaves with a working draft of the dashboard for their own scope
Every indicator retained comes with a definition sheet ready to circulate
Production lead time is treated as a design constraint rather than an uncertainty

Programme

1From Management Needs to Indicators

Start from the decision, not from the data

  • Objectives of the scope and key success factors
  • Identifying action levers that can genuinely be acted upon
  • Distinguishing between result indicators and activity indicators
  • Alignment with the budget and revised forecasts

2Building and Defining Indicators

Secure reliability before circulating

  • Drafting the definition sheet for an indicator
  • Data sources and the quality of information systems
  • Choosing units
  • reporting frequencies and comparison bases
  • Targets
  • alert thresholds and reading variances
  • Handling missing or late data

3Presentation and Readability

Make the message immediate

  • Page structure and reading hierarchy
  • Choosing chart types according to the message
  • Written commentary and highlighting significant variances
  • Automating production and ensuring reliable updates

4Driving Reviews and Following Up Actions

Keep the dashboard alive

  • The performance review routine and each participant's role
  • Variance analysis and root cause investigation
  • Formalising and following up action plans
  • Periodic review of the indicators retained

Who is it for

Management controllers, finance managers, operational unit heads and department managers responsible for monitoring their activity.

Prerequisites

Practical experience of management control or of budget monitoring for an activity.

Dates & locations

36 scheduled dates between November 2026 and December 2027. Seats are confirmed in the order enquiries are received.

November 2026

December 2026

January 2027

February 2027

March 2027

April 2027

May 2027

June 2027

September 2027

October 2027

November 2027

December 2027

None of these dates suit you? We open additional sessions on request, and any programme can be run privately for your team.

Practical details

Before the programme
Online positioning questionnaire. Your development objectives are shared with the trainer, who tailors the practical case studies to your context.
Teaching methods
Theoretical input, workshops and practical case studies. Digital course materials and method sheets provided.
Assessment
Multiple-choice tests and role-play exercises. Assessment of learning at the start and end of the programme, with immediate and 60-day follow-up evaluations.
After the programme
One year of access to the e-learning platform. Self-assessment of the skills acquired and a 30-day follow-up session with your trainer.
How to register
Registration online or on the basis of a quotation.
Lead time
11 working days after confirmation of registration.
Accessibility
Accessible to people of determination. Contact our accessibility coordinator to design a suitable solution: contact@mpf-academy.ae
Start dates
Rolling intake: in addition to the scheduled sessions, this programme can start on request.