5 best practices for creating effective dashboards
make it easy for people to select a link and go to the dashboard....
.....
Match the following comments with a Mistakes or Best Practices topic. In other words, identify if the comment is related to something that should be considered in avoiding a mistake, or something that should be considered in achieving a best practice. Note all positive comments are not best practices, and all negative comments are not mistakes. Dashboards do not need to allow for the user to filter views, adjust parameters, and drill down. Data presented in tables can be as effective as a chart. Your audience does not need to understand each metric. It is best to wait until better technology is available before implementing a dashboard. Complex graphs and charts are effective on a good dashboard. Once you provide the dashboard to the users, the project is complete. It does not need additional validation. 1. 5 Best Practices 2. 7 Mistakes to avoid
1. 2 2. 2 3. 2 4. 2 5. 2 6. 1
5 best practices
1. choose metrics that matter 2.keep it visual 3. make it interactive 4. keep it current or dont bother 5. make access easy
in order to find the right metrics, you need to consider the following...
1. how does each metric contribute to objectives? 2. do you have data that can shed the light on the objective? 3. can you design a meaningful metric that measures those contributions? 4. is this metric truly necessary to contribute? 5. can you build a systematic and on going means of measurment
7 mistakes to avoid
1. starting off with too much complexity 2. using metrics no one understands 3. cluttering dashboard 4. waiting for complex technology and big business intelligence 5. underestimating the need to maintain dashboard 6. failing to match metrics to the goal 7. using poor graphs and charts
Resist the temptation to make your dashboard too flashy or over-designed, with gauge-like graphics and widgets. As pretty as those may seem, they get in the way with your dashboard's objective: rapidly and easily informing your audience. Keep your dashboard simple in its visual appeal.
Cluttering the Dashboard with Low- Value Graphics and unintelligible widgets
Dashboards are stronger when they connect to larger objectives. Don't fall into the trap of creating dashboards that don't reflect how key metrics within your department impact the success of the organization as a whole.
Failing to match metrics to the goal
It's easy to get overly ambitious and want to provide highly detailed, real-time dashboards covering every business challenge and offering users lots of drill-down options. Don't spend weeks or months coming up with a "perfect" dashboard. Instead, work in short cycles of prototype, test, and adjust.
Starting off with too much complexity
Rolling out a dashboard is not a once-and-done exercise. If you don't check in with your audience to validate the metrics are relevant and the data is updated, it won't get used. Make sure you're validating the usefulness of your dashboard on a regular basis.
Underestimating the need to maintain the dashboard
The way you show and label metrics might make sense to you, but are they meaningful to others? Your metrics can be so familiar to you that you don't take the step to validate them with others. Make sure your metrics not only support the objectives of the dashboard, but make sense to the audience that will encounter it.
Using Metrics no one understands
Take care in how you design your graphs and charts. For example, 3-D charts don't increase viewer comprehension. Garish colors can interfere with interpretation. Using a pie chart is often ineffective, especially if more than six values are represented. Check out "recommended resources" for designing good visualizations.
Using ineffective, poorly designed graphs and charts
Traditional business intelligence (BI) implementations often take much longer than originally anticipated. Waiting for a traditional BI project to materialize may mean months or years of delay. Use applications that help you build and distribute dashboards quickly.
Waiting for complex technology and big business intelligence deployment projects
Identify the mistake that was made in developing or deploying a dashboard in the following situation: The dashboard used cool-looking gauges that took too much space to convey simple numbers. Question 4 options: a) Using metrics no one understands b) Cluttering the dashboard with low-value graphics and unintelligible widgets c) Starting off with too much complexity d) Failing to match metrics to the goal e) Underestimating the need to maintain the dashboard f) Waiting for complex technology and big business intelligence deployment projects g) Using ineffective, poorly designed graphs and charts
b
when designing your dashboard, embrace the use of.....
colors, shapes, lines, thickness, shading
selecting relevent metrics to include in your dashboard is _________
critical
things to avoid on dashboards include...
cute widgets, 3D graphic treatment, distracting color schemes
Identify the best practice that is related to the following situation: Over time, key metrics can shift. Question 3 options: a) Keep it visual b) Choose metrics that matter c) Make access easy d) Make it interactive e) Keep it current or don't bother
e
dashboards are meant to be ________ and ________ __ ______
easy to read
stale data can lend a ______ sense of confidence to decisions
false
alternatives include posting
files on websites, wiki's, or blogs
create your dashboard so that viewers can interact with it to get the answers they seek.... interactive dashboards enable your audience to perform basic analytical tasks such as....
filtering, views, adjusting parameters, drilling down to examine underlying data
browser based distribution is ______
ideal
dashboards that include bar graphs, line graphs, heat maps, and scatterplots are ________ and ________ because they are clear and people know how to read them
popular and impactful
make sure that the data underlying your dashboard is ____ __ _____ and that your current metrics reflect.....
up to date; current business challanges
