Drucker on Dashboards
Peter Drucker brought a case study to class (Cohen, 189). A CEO wanted to put together a Control Panel, much like the control panel of an aircraft, that would let the CEO know precisely what was going on with his company. Drucker asked his class to derive a list of what should go on the control panel. Then he asked the class whether a control panel was really a good idea. The results were almost obvious. The lists were long. Everyone thought a control panel was a good idea.
Drucker said it was a bad idea. There was just too much information for a CEO and her team to follow. An aircraft needs a control panel. The inputs are, basically, finite and easily demonstrable. A company is different. Focusing on what is, essentially, a short list may prevent the CEO from picking up on some other kernel of information that is crucial to her company. The CEO has a job to do that exceeds the capability of a computer to keep track of.
Reference
Cohen, William A. A Class With Drucker. The Lost Lessons of the World's Greatest Management Teacher. AMACOM. 2008.