Dashboard DesignsBest Practices and Graphical Objects

Nethra Sambamoorthi

Dashboard Best Practices Concepts

• This document is created for design purposes only

• Creating data base connected application that updates your dashboard on a regular basis requires software application development work, which is not part of the course.

Dashboard Best Practices

• Layout for dashboard should be one page of Microsoft word landscape view or one slide of Microsoft PPT

• All the measures put together should have a consistent story for follow up actions

• Use conceptual charts, graphs, and components objects (items) given below as ideas to build your dashboard design

• These charts are available in EXCEL/PPT or as object downloadable templates available from office.microsoft.com, unless mentioned by me in the last column below for some special advanced objects

Dashboard is …

• A quick visual way of capturing and presenting the current status of operations/sales/production/logistics in an organization

• It should– Stimulate discussions– Identify and communicate clearly the status,

trends, and exceptions

Different Layers and Different KPIsCapturing Information Designs

• There are different layers of dashboards built for different levels of communications– CEO/board related– Sales/customer engagement– Finance/HR (internal)– Production/Logistics

• Different KPIs used to summarize different processes and yet all are connected to the same enterprise level consumer 360 database that is live 24 x 7.

• The more information details you pack the more powerful dashboard design becomes.

• Restating, Steve Jobs, for our dashboard designs: Design is putting together 5,000 information details for clear, precise, and engaging communication and follow ups

Current Trends• Real time• All dashboards are served from enterprise level single consumer

360 database engine so that the quality and diversity of information designs are consistent

• Dashboards are supported by not only micro consumer level details from consumer 360 super data engine covering HR, facility management, finance, marketing, production, logistics, consumer experience, competitive intelligence, but also (for large companies) weather impacts, health trends, national security, and macro economic trends

• You may learn some design considerations looking at http://www.enterprise-dashboard.com/tag/insurance-marketing-dashboard/ or something similar to such sites

Graphical Objects – Bar Chart

• This is useful for simple comparisons. Here we compare 3 segments across 4 regions

Region1

Region2

Region3

Region4

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

Segment1Segment2Segment3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_38wah-kLpc&feature=player_detailpage

Graphical Objects – Stacked Bar Charts• Useful for simple comparisons when total is fixed with in each

region or when there are too many segments

Catego

ry 1

Catego

ry 2

Catego

ry 3

Catego

ry 4

02000400060008000

100001200014000

Series 3Series 2Series 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztphRTL_rAw&feature=player_detailpage

Pie Chart• Most commonly used chart and it is useful if we want

to communicate percentage distributions of different parts

Regional Differences in Sales

Regions Sales Total

Region1 8,600 60%

Region2 2,900 20%

Region3 1,400 10%

Region4 1,400 10%

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMNvFEZk5tk&feature=player_detailpage

Line Chart

This is useful to show trends

Jan-12

Feb-12

Mar-

12

Apr-12

May

-12

Jun-12

-

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

Segment1Segment2Segment3

There are some interesting trend patterns you can bring out looking at the line graphs

Note the horizontal time axis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=KaQ58LDLxwQ

Meter Gauge• Useful to show some continuously varying

production or consumer engagement is under control or not.

0 50

20

DASHBOARD CHART

6

25

12

18

37

31

43

The excel work book which you can use to create meter gauges

Microsoft Excel Worksheet

There are two important parameters; the one which provides the dial range (here it is 0 to 50) and the other is the accomplished pointer (that is 20 in the chart)

Another way of creating Meter Gauge

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=f6c93-fQlCs

Editable USA State Level Map

Individual states can be colored for highlight – click the state you would like to color and use the shape fill tool.

Tip

http://ppt-toolkit.com/free-powerpoint-map-of-usa/

Basic Control Charts

Proportion conforming vs. not conforming. There are many other control charts also.

The graph should be between upper and lower bounds

Think about why we need lower bound also

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvp8qmH3Eos&feature=player_detailpage

How to Draw a Pareto Chart

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxr0iL6NI1g

How to Draw and Use Fishbone Diagram?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5hQcN49LjM

Some Additional Usable Indicators