The KPI strip is the at-a-glance health check for the period you're viewing. Four metrics is enough to spot anything genuinely wrong without being so much that you can't scan it in three seconds.
01 What are the four KPI cards?
- Gross revenue — total till receipts for the range, VAT included.
- Net revenue — gross minus VAT and card fees.
- COGS — cost of goods sold for what was actually sold in the range.
- EBIT — the final answer for the range.
02 What do the sparklines under each number mean?
Below each number, a small chart shows how that metric moved across the selected range. Trend up-right means improving; flat means stable; down-right means deteriorating. The sparkline gives you a directional read in half a second without having to open the full chart.
03 What does the comparison chip compare against?
In the corner of each card, a small chip shows the period-over-period change vs. the previous equivalent range. If you're looking at this month, the chip compares against last month. Looking at last 30 days, it compares against the 30 days before that. Always like-for-like.
04 How do I read the four cards together?
A typical reading pattern is to scan the four chips first to see which metrics are up versus down, then look at the sparklines for the ones with surprising chips. From there you can diagnose what's happening — gross up but EBIT down points to costs growing faster than revenue, net up but EBIT flat means operating costs absorbed the gain. Example diagnoses follow.
- Gross up, EBIT down. Revenue growing but costs growing faster. Look at COGS card next.
- Net up, EBIT flat. Operating costs absorbed the gain. Check fixed-cost line in the P&L.
- All four flat. Stable period. Probably no action needed.
Was this article helpful?
Your vote helps us decide what to write next.