The Parallels Between Flying an Airplane and Managing a Business

Flying a plane and doing your monthly management reports. In both cases you are responsible for heading in the right direction, making sure all the systems are working, and staying on course.

I came across the Icon A5 while looking into getting a pilot's license; the interior design was stunning, particularly the dashboard! The simplicity of it was astounding. The Icon was designed to make flying a plane as easy as driving a car, and piloting the plane is just as easy.

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My thoughts are immediately drawn to the parallels between dashboards of the A5 and management reports. Most organizations still feel like they are flying the Boeing 747 commercial jet when they read their management reports. Let's examine this and see what we can learn from it.

Real-time

With the increasing popularity of real-time data, executives are demanding more accurate and up-to-date management reports. However, traditional reporting systems are not equipped to handle real-time data quickly and accurately. This has led to the development of new real-time processing platforms that can handle high volumes of data quickly and accurately.

The angle of attack dashboard was once only available to fighter jet pilots. It wasn't until recently that the technology became available to recreational pilots in their recreational planes. As an example, the Icon A5 made the angle of attack the primary indicator on their dashboard, making it easier for beginners and season pilots alike to use this tool. It could be that this is due to the processing capability of today's computers that allows designers to incorporate such a capability into the design of these recreational aircraft.

AI Predictive Models

The advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) in computing allows predictive models to be applied to management reporting. Predictive modelling is a technique that uses past data to make predictions about future events or behaviour. This technology can be used in a number of ways, including for forecasting sales and customer behaviour, managing inventory, and predicting financial results. AI has the potential to improve both the accuracy and speed of these types of predictions, which can help managers make more informed decisions about their businesses.

Mobile Delivery

As technology advances, managers are now able to review management reports on the go. By delivering reports and data to mobile devices, managers can access them quickly and easily. This gives managers the ability to identify problems more easily and make the necessary adjustments. Research by David E. Aaker has demonstrated that the use of mobile technology can help managers to be more effective in managing their businesses. The process of collecting and interpreting management reports is a major task for managers.

User Interface

If steering a business is like driving a car, we need to make sure the user interface is easy and intuitive, in other words, the management reports should be just as easy as driving a car

The user interface is one of the most important aspects of any business. If it's easy to use and navigate, customers will be more likely to return and recommend your business to their friends. Here are four tips for designing an easy user interface:

1. Make sure all elements are clearly labelled and easily accessible.
2. Use simple, straightforward design principles.
3. Make sure all buttons work as expected and that input fields are large enough to allow for accurate input.
4. Avoid cluttered designs and excessive animation; focus on simplicity instead.

Interactive Dashboards

Today's technology allows for managers to interact and drill into the reports and dashboards, this allows managers to look into the underlying reasons for the performance of the business. Today's businesses can't operate with only static reports. Fortunately, managers today have access to a number of tools and technologies that enable them to interact with reports and analyze dashboards. This has made it easier for managers to gather information, diagnose problems, and make decisions. Managers can stay ahead of the curve and achieve goals by using the right tools.

Clutter Kills Intuitiveness

When management reports and dashboards are designed with a lot of data, managers can't manage intuitively. The managers must spend time making sense of the data before they can apply their business judgments. Imagine learning how to fly the 747 instead of the Icon A5. Learning how to navigate through all of the dials and gauges probably kills the fun of flying. Many of my pilot friends love flying and are looking forward to the day when they will be able to retire from commercial flying and just fly for fun! Therefore, we should design management reports that are similar to the dashboard of the Icon A5, while avoiding the overload of data and information found in commercial planes such as the 747. As you drive, you will probably only think about a few things to watch out for in your dashboard, speed is probably the most important, the RPM, the odometer, the distance you've travelled, but that's about it. In a similar vein, what are the metrics we need to manage our business? These cannot be more than a couple of key metrics.

Conclusion

In the recent past, I've seen a number of companies that have begun to use dashboards as a way to communicate and inform their managers about what's going on in the business. In many cases, these reports have become a bit complex and difficult to interpret. I've also seen a number of managers who complain that they can't keep up with all the information on their dashboards!

Therefore, we should strive to simplify management reports so that managers can keep their eyes on the road rather than the dashboard!

The views reflected in this article are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the global EY organization or its member firms.