Who Uses Dashboards

Different roles: exec, manager, individual contributor.

Different needs each.

Not: same dashboard for everyone.

The Purpose Question

What decision does this dashboard support?

What action follows viewing it?

If no action – not needed.

Every metric ties to action.

Information Hierarchy

Most important: largest, top.

Secondary: smaller, below or right.

Tertiary: only on drill-down.

Not: everything equal size.

Above the Fold

Key metrics only.

3-5 max.

At a glance understanding.

Rest of dashboard for depth.

Chart Selection

Line: trends over time.

Bar: comparison.

Pie: percentages of whole (rarely needed).

Number: single value.

Table: detailed data.

Match chart to question.

Reading Order

Left to right, top to bottom (LTR languages).

Right to left for Hebrew/Arabic.

Follow eye path.

Not: random arrangement.

Color Meaning

Red: bad, warning.

Green: good, growth.

Yellow: neutral or warning.

Blue: informational.

Consistent across dashboard.

Numbers Formatting

Large numbers: 1.2M not 1200000.

Currency: symbol and thousands separators.

Percentages: appropriate decimal places.

Dates: consistent format.

Filters and Time Ranges

Common: last 7 days, 30 days, quarter, year.

Custom range option.

Comparison: vs previous period.

Persistent per user preference.

Drill-Down Capability

Overview → detail.

Click to explore.

Not: everything visible immediately.

Layered discovery.

Empty States

No data yet: explanatory.

Zero results: helpful message.

Loading: skeleton screens.

Not: blank canvas.

Real-Time vs Cached

Live: some metrics need it.

Cached: most fine.

Show refresh time.

Don’t hit expensive queries constantly.

Personalization

User-configurable widgets.

Saved views.

Default layouts by role.

Balance: flexibility vs simplicity.

Alerts and Thresholds

Highlight anomalies.

Not: subtle. Users miss them.

Visual indicators.

Optional: email/push alerts.

Common Mistakes

Too many metrics.

No clear purpose.

Charts that mislead.

Auto-refresh causing distraction.

No mobile version.

Mobile Dashboards

Prioritize even more.

Fewer metrics.

Vertical layout.

Touch-friendly filters.

Critical stats only.

Export and Share

PDF export.

CSV data download.

Shareable link.

Common enterprise need.

Building for Enterprise

Role-based views.

Access controls.

Audit logs.

White-labeling.

Different requirements.

Testing Dashboards

Watch users use them.

Do they find what they need?

How long to answer questions?

What they ignore?

Iterate based on real usage.

Our Approach

Start with purpose.

Prioritize ruthlessly.

Test with real users.

Iterate on data.

Simple beats sophisticated.

Based on Real Projects

This guide is based on our work with:

• Platforma365
• Podd

Further Reading

If this guide helped you, you might also want to read our comprehensive guide on UI/UX Design.