Analytics for Housing Managers
One day · Microsoft Excel · No prior statistical knowledge assumed
A practical course for housing managers who work with data every day but were never trained to question it. Participants learn to read charts critically, interrogate reported figures, and use a simple Excel-based technique to tell the difference between a problem worth acting on and normal variation.
What's covered
Why data literacy matters now: Tenant Satisfaction Measures, Awaab's Law, the Renters' Rights Act, and the pressure on managers to interpret — not just receive — performance data
Reading charts: the most common misreadings of bar charts, line charts, histograms, and scorecards — and the reference points that make a chart speak
Statistics that managers use: mean and median, when each is appropriate, standard deviation, correlation, and the power of segmentation
Run charts and exception spotting: a simple Statistical Process Control (SPC) framework in Excel to distinguish normal variation from a genuine signal, using four exception rules — outlier, shift, trend, and two-of-three
The five common pitfalls: average of averages, denominator drift, period-end timing issues, definitional drift, and survivorship bias
Who it's for
Executives, housing managers, and operational managers who receive performance reports but were not formally trained in data analysis. The course is equally relevant across housing management, repairs and asset management, income and arrears, and supported housing. If you have ever sat in a management meeting wondering whether a figure actually means what people think it means, this course is for you.
Requirements
A laptop with Microsoft Excel (Microsoft 365 or Excel 2019 or later)
No prior knowledge of statistics or data analysis
Format
One full day, delivered online or in person, although a half day version is available. Sessions alternate between short conceptual introductions and structured interpretation exercises in which participants predict, discuss, and then reveal — a format designed to make the learning stick. All worked examples use arrears data, a measure every housing manager recognises.
Participants leave with a practical Excel workbook from the run chart exercise and a double-sided A4 take-away summarising the five questions to ask of every number, the five common pitfalls, and the four SPC rules.