Extracting insights are a necessity in today’s climate, and merely collecting data is not enough. To create strategies that impact your operational continuity, you have to be collecting and analysing the right data.
Crafting dashboards that are both visually appealing and provide effective insights require users to not only prioritise real-time data but also to remember the ease of understanding in the dashboards. Here are a few tips from the Smartz Business Intelligence and Sisense data departments;
Screen Spacing
When creating dashboards that contain multiple essential points of interest, it is crucial to focus on the dashboards screen spacing. Dashboards are most effective when they provide insight as quickly and seamlessly as possible. Specific industries have constant moving parts that users need to keep track of, such as the manufacturing and production industries. These dashboards need to have the right information in the top placements to provide the easiest access to insights.
Focus on the right data
There are millions of data points created daily within a business, and it is essential to know that different data points are necessary for various tasks. It is, therefore, crucial to understanding the answers you are looking for before you create a visualisation. Dashboards are your birds-eye view of your business with an option to drill down further to identify specific insights. Reducing the clutter on your screen enables you to understand your data quickly.
Prioritise real-time data
While the collection and storing of historical data are essential, prioritising it above, real-time insights can put your company at a disadvantage. Making critical decisions in your business requires you to have data that is reliable and most recent. Your dashboard should have a strong focus on real-time data to keep yourself ahead of your problems. Incorporating design elements such as gauges into your dashboards will give you a quick overview of your operations and metrics and store historical data to review later. Working from a combination of performance metrics and historical data enables you to make fast, informed decisions that will benefit your company.
Simplicity is best
Dashboards are your modern-day assistant; it gives you answers about your most frequently asked business questions. Creating dashboards that are over-complicated with too much information or irrelevant information will make your aim of quick responses redundant. Your dashboards shouldn’t take more than five seconds of viewing to understand your data.
It is therefore vital to have the right data and to remove the clutter. Make sure your dashboard is prioritising quality over quantity by removing elements you do not need in understanding your operations. You can create hierarchies to store the data that is important but not immediately relevant in presenting your operation-critical data.
The right visualisations
The central part of your dashboard is your visualisation; however, they can only be effective if they are contextually accurate. Use your dataset and create a visualisation that conveys the information best. Let your visualisation mould to your data and not the other way around. Using your data, you can create dashboards that enhance your data insights and communicate your idea clearly without sacrificing its value.
Choosing the right dashboard allows you to effectively organise your organisation and give you real-time, accurate insights into your operations. Using a dashboard that displays the right analytics and insight in a focused, easy-to-understand manner will allow you to make informed decisions based on your data in your business.
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