Abstract
Effective financial stewardship of any clinical program within an academic medical center or health care organization begins with a clear understanding of how the organization generates revenue and allocates it to programs. While the budget allows leaders to see where their finances are currently, change requires that they have the data to support proposals to obtain institutional buy-in and support growth. For leaders, it is essential that they know not only what data can support their goals, but where to find that data. In this paper, we take a deeper dive into the fundamental questions of the “who,” “what,” “where,” “when,” and “why” of data collection to support operations. Leaders who can pair clinical insights with concrete data can build persuasive arguments for program advocacy.