Two short activities. Take your time: there is no score here, only feedback.

1. Sort it

Which of these can data answer as they stand?

  • Too vague
  • Answerable
  • Is our website good?
  • How many visitors left the checkout page without paying in September?
  • Are people engaged?
  • What share of new starters completed onboarding within 30 days this year, compared with last year?
  • Did average waiting time fall after we added a second desk?
  • Why is morale low?

The answerable questions all name a group, a measure and a comparison. The vague ones are still worth asking, but they need to be broken down first.

2. Quick check

Your manager says: "Customer service is getting worse." What is the most useful first question to ask back?

  • Who said so? Worth knowing, but it does not tell you what to measure.
  • Worse on what measure, and compared with when? Yes. This turns the worry into something you can check: for example, response time this quarter against last quarter.
  • Should we hire more staff? That jumps to a solution before you know the problem.