Understand Variance

Yes, variance fundamental, a primary indication of context and causal influences.

Do You Understand the Variance In Your Data?
Thomas C. Redman in HBR

It is easy enough for managers to see that things in the business world vary. Some marketing campaigns produce great results; similar ones do not. There are times when the supply chain works effortlessly, and other times when every step is snarled. Some days the numbers look fine, and other days they just don’t add up. Variation is a manager’s natural enemy, making it more difficult to sort out what’s really going on, make valid predictions, and be in control.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Sorting out variation provides needed context, points to opportunity, and helps managers maintain their cool when something goes wrong. Managers should learn how to measure variation, understand what it tells them about their business, decompose it, and, when necessary, reduce it.

I advise managers to sort out variation and what is causing it. Doing so provides needed context, points to opportunity, and helps them maintain their cool when something goes wrong. Consider the following example. The figure below depicts the error rates for the first three weeks of an invoicing process .... "