Automating reports: where to start

Three steps that remove manual reporting without buying an expensive platform.

A report that is assembled by hand every week can almost always be produced by a script. Start with a data map, not with tooling.

1. Write down where the numbers come from

List the sources: CRM, spreadsheet, bank, ad account. For each one note whether the data can be pulled via API or has to be parsed from a file.

2. Fix the report shape

One sheet, fixed columns, clear units. While the shape keeps changing, automation will break at every step.

3. Build the smallest script

The script pulls the data, normalises it into one table and writes a file. Scheduling and error alerts come later — once manual assembly is no longer needed.

The approach delivers results in a couple of days and does not require changing the tools your team already uses.

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