Reporting is a vital part of the IT management process. Without reporting to the business and IT management, the actions and effectiveness of the work carried out, value for money, and continued investment is very difficult to justify. It is a bit like the saying "if a tree falls in a wood and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound." If we are managing the IT well, but no-one knows about it, do they believe we are making a difference?
Good reporting will show the areas of success and challenge against our goals and enable us to ensure that our efforts are focused on the right areas as we continue to administer the PCs.
Reporting should show both the proactive efforts and the expected results, for example, low incidents, and the reactive efforts to respond to alerts and support requests. This can become a serious strain on time if the information required is too difficult to access, so results are best recorded as the activity is carried out or even better...
