Developing Analyst Dashboards

Session Description

Give your users power to discover hidden insights in their data rather than forcing them to focus on navigation. Develop a dashboard with hover, drilldowns, filters

and smart controls.

“As single-screen displays, dashboards do not always provide all the information needed to perform a job or to pursue a particular set of objectives. They can provide the initial overview…, but they need to be supplemented with additional information for more comprehensive understanding and response. Dashboards should almost always be designed for interaction.”

--Stephen Few (2006, Information Dashboard Design, O’Reilly)

Types of Dashboard Interaction

Drill down – from a higher level to more detail

Drill across – move laterally through your data

Slice and Dice – Select a smaller portion of data

Filter – Simplify by removing the data of lesser interest

Principles of Dashboard Interaction

Direct – initiate action by clicking on the data itself

Discoverable – hover, highlighting, underline

Lightweight – Update smallest possible object (KPI)

Stay on the Page whenever possible

Consistent – symmetry of interaction

Request Variables

Controls •Name and value

•User Specified

Graphs, Maps, etc.

•Auto-generated for each drilldown

•User Specified

Tables •Auto-generated for each drilldown

•User Specified

Drilldown Action Cycle

Demo: Where are we starting?

Demo: What should we change?

1. Reduce the amount of data

Demo: What should we change?

1. Reduce the amount of data

- Date selector

Demo: What should we change?

1. Reduce the amount of data

- Date selector

- Country selector

Demo: What should we change?

1. Reduce the amount of data

- Date selector

- Country selector

2. Compare one month with another

Three ways to select countries

1. List control

2. Tables with html checkboxes for each item in table

3. Layout with server script to create cells and CenterView checkboxes

Select countries - List

List control – Multiple select with control click

Select countries - List

1. Advanatages

a.Datafunnel connects directly

b.CenterView control

c. Output of control can be used directly

2. Disadvantages

a.Hard for some users to control click

b.Requires Server Script to select all items

Select countries – Table Checkboxes

Tables with html checkboxes for each item in table

Select countries – Table Checkboxes

1. Advanatages

a.Datafunnel connects directly

b.Full formatting capabilities of tables

c. Checkbox easy for all users

2. Disadvantages

a.Not CenterView controls – requires Server Script to set policy

b.Requires Server Script to evaluate settings

Select countries – Layout Checkboxes

Layout with server script to create cells and CenterView checkboxes

Select countries – Table Checkboxes

1. Advanatages

a. Checkboxes easy for all users

b.CenterView controls

2. Disadvantages

a.Requires Server Script to generate controls

b.Requires Server Script to evaluate settings

c. Formatting limited

Q & A