{"id":9507,"date":"2015-09-09T10:30:25","date_gmt":"2015-09-09T15:30:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/?p=9507"},"modified":"2023-03-13T16:01:06","modified_gmt":"2023-03-13T21:01:06","slug":"how-to-take-your-dashboards-to-the-next-level","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/2015\/09\/how-to-take-your-dashboards-to-the-next-level\/","title":{"rendered":"How to take your dashboards to the next level"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Education\"Summary: While many organizations use business\/executive dashboards, not all dashboards are created equal. Some dashboards are key business tools, while others are nothing more than charts on a page. In this article, you’ll learn a few ways your business can take your dashboards to the next level–turning them into key business drivers.<\/em>
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photo credit: Negativespace<\/a> via pixabay<\/a> cc<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Do you ever get the feeling that your dashboards are nothing more than graphs on a page?<\/p>\n

You hear about the value of good dashboards. You read stories about other organizations that use dashboards to drive business.<\/p>\n

But, you aren\u2019t seeing the value out of your dashboards. They aren\u2019t driving much of anything.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a common problem with dashboards. So many businesses want dashboards. But, when they get dashboards, they don\u2019t use them to their full potential.<\/p>\n

The big questions: How can you take your dashboards to the next level? How can you make them more than charts on a page?<\/p>\n

Today, let\u2019s explore that topic. Here are a few ways you can take your dashboards to the next level.<\/p>\n

1. Throw out your vanity metrics<\/h3>\n

Too many dashboards are cluttered with vanity metrics. These are elements that look nice, but don\u2019t lead to action.<\/p>\n

On the flip side, you’ll find actionable metrics. These are metrics that drive decisions. These are metrics that you want on your dashboards.<\/p>\n

The first step in taking your dashboards to the next level: Examine each of your metrics. How does each one drive action? Would a change (either up or down) lead to a decision?<\/p>\n

\u201cA dashboard is not about eye candy and colorful charts; it\u2019s about making quick, informed decisions,\u201d says Freddy Mini, CEO of Netvibes<\/span><\/a>. \u201cWith all the data and analytics together on your dashboard, it\u2019s the best place for business automation. Make sure your dashboard can react on its own to make decisions where
\nseconds are critical.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The big question: How can you tell the difference between a vanity metric and an actionable metric? Here\u2019s an example for you:<\/p>\n

Suppose you have a customer service dashboard. A vanity metric might tell you how many customer support issues your support staff has resolved this month. It might even tell you how quickly they resolve issues on average.<\/p>\n

Now, does that really tell you anything that can drive action? If the numbers are abnormally high, you might want to dig deeper. But, it doesn\u2019t tell you anything on the surface.<\/p>\n

Now, consider a dashboard that displays WHICH issues customers contact your support staff about. The dashboard could even display average time to resolve every type of issue. That\u2019s data that drives action. You can quickly see which areas of your product or service needs attention.<\/p>\n

2. Extend dashboards across the business<\/h3>\n

Dashboards are too often viewed as an executive tool–and little else. They\u2019re used to give decision-makers a clear view of their business.<\/p>\n

The problem with this approach: It limits the dashboard\u2019s value. Dashboards are far more than a tool for business leaders. They can be used across your entire business.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany times I hear business leaders say that they need everyone driving the same direction,\u201d says Jean Cook, Business Coach and Certified Facilitator at Corporate Performance Group<\/span><\/a>. \u201cOne good way to help with that is to make the dashboard a tool for your team beyond the executive office\/s. If the leaders and workers up and down the org chart all know the goals and where you are at in getting there everyone can point their activity in the direction you want.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

3. Make them relevant<\/h3>\n

Many businesses make a critical mistake: They deliver the same dashboard to many users. Parts of the dashboard are relevant to some, while other parts are useful to others. Some employees just ignore it altogether, because it doesn\u2019t apply to them at all.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a key rule with dashboards: One size doesn\u2019t fit all. For a dashboard to be useful to different users, they must see data that applies to their specific role.<\/p>\n

\u201cA good dashboard is a relevant dashboard,\u201d says Levent Gurses, founder of Movel<\/span><\/a>. \u201cToo often, dashboards are designed too narrowly for a small number of people and for the rest, they are simply not relevant. If we can\u2019t relate to the data, we can\u2019t use it for anything productive.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Now, I know what you\u2019re thinking: \u201cHow can we possibly give every user a unique dashboard?\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a valid question. Especially in larger companies, where you might have hundreds of users, delivering unique dashboards to each user isn\u2019t feasible.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s one way around that problem: Give users customizable dashboards<\/span><\/a>. Let them adjust the data displayed on the dashboard, as well as the layout. This way, you give multiple users a single dashboard that they can adjust to fit their needs.<\/p>\n

4. Make them accessible<\/h3>\n

You may have the best, most useful dashboard ever created. It might include actionable data that drives decision-making. It might extend across the entire business, delivering relevant data to every user.<\/p>\n

But, if it\u2019s not accessible whenever and wherever your users need it, is it a useful dashboard?<\/p>\n

\u201cA good dashboard is accessible, from anywhere, to anyone,\u201d says Gurses. \u201cFor business meetings a web-based dashboard can easily be projected to the screen. For specific team rooms, a dashboard screen can be a permanent fixture on the wall. Whatever it is, it needs to be easily accessible at any given time.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The fact is, employees aren\u2019t tied to their desks anymore. Dashboards shouldn\u2019t be tied to the desktop.<\/p>\n

Now, this goes beyond smartphones and tablets, though mobile-accessible dashboards are important. As explained above, your dashboard must be accessible to your employees whenever they need it. For instance, I\u2019ve seen some manufacturing companies place monitors on their shop floors just for dashboards<\/span><\/a>. These dashboards track progress and goals throughout the day, and are always accessible to the employees.<\/p>\n

5. Give them depth<\/h3>\n
\"photo<\/a>
photo credit: blickpixel<\/a> via pixabay<\/a> cc<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many dashboards feel like they\u2019re nothing more than charts on a page…because that\u2019s all they are. They offer no interactivity. They offer no data exploration. They\u2019re simply a graphical representation of data.<\/p>\n

The problem with this approach: It limits the dashboard\u2019s effectiveness. It hurts the user\u2019s ability to get a clear view of the data. An effective dashboard gives you actionable data, with the ability to get more details if needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cA truly useful dashboard must have the ability to drill-down,\u201d says Gurses. \u201cWhen key decisions are made, detailed data may be needed. A dashboard with the ability to drill-down will provide the necessary detail for the most critical business decisions.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

6. Measure progress towards your goals<\/h3>\n

\u201cDashboards must have the goal and the result,\u201d says Cook. \u201cKnowing that you shipped 10,000 items this week doesn’t help unless you know how many you needed to ship to hit your goals.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It\u2019s a key element that many dashboards lack. They track data, but ignore goals. If you truly want to take your dashboard to the next level, you must track both. A goal gives everyone in your company something to aim for, and the dashboard tracks real-time progress towards that goal.<\/p>\n

But, it\u2019s not just about your goals and progress. As explained below, once you\u2019ve established your goals, you can break that down into actions needed to accomplish those goals. Once broken down, you can track progress on each action that leads to your goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cMeasure not just financial results but productivity as well,\u201d says Cook. \u201cA dashboard does not take the place of your monthly financial statement review, the dashboard tells you how you are driving toward your destination. Know what your goals are and measure the things that will get you there. The items you track on your dashboard must give you an ability to predict the result. For example if you want $400,000 of sales a month, you need $100,000 a week and you need to know that the activity to get that $100,000 a week in the future is happening. So, don’t just measure the sales $, measure the activity\/s that will lead to those future sales $. For example, # of in-person sales calls or #\/$ of quotes completed.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

7. Give the full picture<\/h3>\n

Another big problem I frequently see with dashboards: They only tell part of the story. The dashboard only integrates with one aspect of a company\u2019s data, but doesn\u2019t combine data from different sources.<\/p>\n

For instance, a dashboard might pull data from the ERP system, but ignore data in the warehouse management and online ordering system. Some businesses still have a good amount of data floating around in spreadsheets–which doesn’t get included in the dashboard.<\/p>\n

Data quality lies at the foundation of any effective dashboard. If your data isn\u2019t comprehensive (or clean), your dashboard cannot truly be effective.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike every chef will tell you: to get the best cuisine, you need the best ingredients,\u201d says Mini. \u201cIntelligence and cuisine are both about transformation of raw materials into perfect outcomes. So make sure you have a strong collection of data sources you trust for your various projects\/monitoring needs.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Summary<\/h3>\n

These are just a few ways to take your dashboards to the next level, but there are plenty more. If you would like to add anything to this list, I\u2019d love to hear it. Feel free to share in the comments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary: While many organizations use business\/executive dashboards, not all dashboards are created equal. Some dashboards are key business tools, while others are nothing more than charts on a page. In this article, you’ll learn a few ways your business can take your dashboards to the next level–turning them into key business drivers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","slim_seo":{"title":"How to take your dashboards to the next level - mrc's Cup of Joe Blog","description":"Summary: While many organizations use business\/executive dashboards, not all dashboards are created equal. Some dashboards are key business tools, while others"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[12],"class_list":["post-9507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-education","tag-business-dashboards"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9507"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9507\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14652,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9507\/revisions\/14652"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}