Information Dashboards:

Transcription

1 Information Dashboards: 1 Does your company need one? In most businesses, data is a highly underutilized tool. Existing in spreadsheets, databases, and otherwise difficult-to-access forms, it s rarely analyzed efficiently or thoroughly. This means valuable insights may go completely overlooked, potentially costing an organization money or wasting resources. Many organizations attempt to make their data more useful by hiring an in-house data analyst (or by assigning analysis responsibilities to an existing worker). While this works for some businesses, it s not the right fit for all especially those that can t afford a proper analyst. What if there is an easier way to pull insights from data without the hassle of training a new employee or forcing management to endure hours of statistics classes? Enter information dashboards, a simple and clear way to instantly visualize your most important data.

2 2 What is an Information Dashboard? A good way to understand data dashboards is to begin by looking at another dashboard: the one in your car. At a glance, you ll see lots of important information. You know how much fuel you have left, how fast you re going, whether your car is running too hot or cold, and whether there s anything you need to deal with immediately (like a Check Engine light). The information available on your dashboard isn t everything there is to know about your car. Your car s onboard computer keeps track of a lot more information than what you see on the dashboard. When you re driving, however, you only need to be aware of a few important pieces of information to properly operate your machine and arrive safely at your destination. A data dashboard works in essentially the same way. There are hundreds or even thousands of possible bits of information related to your business. The trick is looking at the important ones; those that help your business arrive at its destination and achieve its goals. By looking at your data dashboard, you ll immediately be able to see and understand the performance indicators (PIs) and key performance indicators (KPIs) that drive your business decisions. You ll know if you need to make adjustments without having to sort through raw data, saving you time and giving you a big advantage over your competition. Operating a business without a data dashboard is kind of like driving without a speedometer and trying to calculate, on the fly, how fast you re driving. It s time consuming, and by the time the data is calculated, it s likely already out-of-date.

3 3 Using a data visualization dashboard, upper- and mid-level management can personally see their organization s key performance indicators and make decisions based on that information. One reason an information dashboard is so useful is that the data is presented in a visual way. At Boost Labs, we analyze the unique business use cases of our clients to determine the most effective way to visually communicate their important data. Our specialty is developing new data visualization dashboard concepts. This was the case in the visualization we created for U.S. Census Bureau. Why Data Dashboards are Useful Some companies wonder why there s so much fuss over data dashboards. We can calculate our traffic sources using analytics, they say. How does visualizing help us? Let s be clear: data dashboards aren t necessarily for the team statistician or data analyst, though they can still benefit from them. Whom data dashboards are perfect for, however, is management.

4 4 Company management usually has a lot more to think about than website traffic or current sales. They have to monitor supply lines, ensure goals are met, oversee employee training, and perform other essential tasks that simply take up a lot of their time. A data dashboard allows managers to easily track PIs and KPIs, enabling them to make smarter managerial decisions without spending time crunching data. Here are the kinds of people who typically benefit the most from data dashboards: Senior management who need to understand sales, web traffic, and other KPIs but who don t have the time to review full reports. Middle Managers who need up-to-the minute data about which team tasks are completed. Executives who need fresh company growth data in meetings with investors. Essentially, dashboards allow everyone from entry workers to top-level personnel to immediately understand complex, critical data and take action. This gives management a distinct edge in decision making and management actions. Saving Time and Money with a Digital Dashboard Creating and using information dashboards benefits organizations in several ways: Dashboards help prioritize and make sense of the almost overwhelming amount of data available to an organization. Employees can save time (and company money) by using easy-to-interpret dashboards instead of analyzing s, papers, documents, and databases themselves. Upper management can access real-time data without needing to have information translated through a data analyst. Dashboard information is read only, meaning there s no chance of accidentally

5 5 changing or erasing database information when trying to view it. Public information dashboards about a company can be used to promote positive awareness (such as a live count of people helped through an organization s services). Because they deliver real-time data, dashboards provide a reliable source of information (rather than outdated data) for decision making. The entire company can monitor performance of the company, which means everyone can celebrate the wins or rally to save the day. Why a Custom Dashboard is Absolutely Necessary Without delivering the time- and cost-saving benefits described above, a dashboard won t have a significant return on investment. To make sure a digital dashboard is a smart investment, it needs to have metrics that are tailored to the target audience a specific organization s employees. Customization doesn t need to stop at the organizational level. Depending on the type of customization, it s even possible for employees in the same organization to see a different data visualization dashboard depending on their roles and data needs. For example, a manager may see one set of data visualized on a dashboard (such as sales for his or her team), while a vice president would need to have a summary of different information (such as the company s monthly revenue).

6 6 How Digital Dashboards are Designed Not all metrics have equal importance to all businesses. For example, some e-commerce websites may have only a few visitors but many sales. Other sites will only get a single sale from their traffic, but that sale will be worth several thousand dollars. The information these businesses need to excel is very different. With the help of the right agency, your business can have the custom dashboard it needs to inform management and leaders of the most important data at a glance. Boost Labs, for example, develops custom information dashboards using our proven four-phase system: Discovery Phase: In this phase, specific business use cases are identified. This tells us what information your business needs to know and what information you don t need to know at any given time. Analysis Phase: Here, our analysts scour your data to understand what it reveals about your business regarding your goals and objectives. We look for hidden, unconsidered, or multifaceted connections that may not be readily visible without deep analysis and consider what data would best serve your business s employees and executives. Design Phase: Once we ve identified the most relevant data to your organization, our design team works to develop a streamlined, clear way of visualizing that data. We ll draft sketches, produce mockups, and seek client feedback until we ve reached an ideal design solution. Development Phase: After the design is approved and finalized, our developers build and test a dashboard prototype. Once everything works as intended, we launch the dashboard. The benefits of this process are clear. A data dashboard isn t simply slapping as many charts and graphs onto a page as possible. Creating a useful visualization of essential data is a disciplined, carefully executed process that is thoroughly scrutinized until the final product is live. Accessing Information through Mobile Dashboards One of the chief benefits of an information dashboard is that it allows busy executives to easily catch up on important data related to their duties. Company meetings, client visits, and other duties make it difficult for some executives to find the time to sit down at a computer and load up their data dashboard. No matter how well-executed a dashboard may be, it s worthless if it s not used. Fortunately, the nature of data dashboards makes them ideal for being viewed on mobile devices. As part of our custom dashboard development process, we can create mobile dashboards that are

7 7 optimized for viewing on-the-go. This can be a mobile version of the same data available on a desktop dashboard, or it can show information that might be more relevant while away from the office. Here are some benefits of mobile dashboards: Real time data: Instead of ing the latest published report to themselves, executives can pull up the mobile dashboard to see a live feed of the newest data. Access anywhere: Not near a computer? A mobile dashboard displays important information in a format optimized for mobile viewing. All important information: Like desktop information dashboards, mobile dashboards can be customized to include any important information that might need to be accessed while away from a desktop computer. KPIs, funnel reports, and other important analytics can all be viewed from a mobile dashboard. Begin Making Smarter Decisions through a Custom Information Dashboard No matter where an employee is in an organization, a custom-built data dashboard can improve the quality of decision making, save time, and bring a positive returnon-investment. However, it s important that the data dashboards used are customized to meet the needs of the organization it serves. With our four-phase process, Boost Labs can create a custom visualization of your organization s most important data. We can find insights previously obscured by hard-to-interpret data and display those insights in a clear, immediately understandable way. Our record of creating data visualization dashboards for organizations of all sizes from enterprise level to small business has given us the experience your business needs to get the most out of its data. Contact us today to learn more about how a custombuilt dashboard can quickly provide a positive return-on-investment and streamline your business.

8 BOOST LABS IS A 8 TECHNICAL DESIGN FIRM LOCATED IN THE WASHINGTON, D.C. METROPOLITAN AREA. We specialize in Data Visualization and User Interface Design and bring life to great ideas, whether they result in print, web, mobile, or other products. We Offer: Data Visulaization & Infographics { User Interaction Design Information/Data Architecture Application Development We are looking for clients who value design clarity and cutting-edge user experience. Drop us a note. Motion Graphics } info@boostlabs.com (301) BoostLabs.com For more on Data-Centric Design, Visualizations & Visual Content check out the Boost Labs Blog.