Business Intelligence
Designing dashboards people actually use
Most dashboards fail for reasons unrelated to technology. A decision-first approach to business intelligence.
BoiroMetric Consulting · · 5 min read
A dashboard is a means to a decision. When it is designed around available data rather than required decisions, it tends to be visited once and forgotten.
Start with the meeting
Ask which recurring meeting or decision the report will support. Design for that context: the questions asked, the actions available and the time people have.
Fewer, better measures
A small number of clearly defined measures with targets and owners is more useful than a page of charts.
Trust comes first
If users find one number they believe is wrong, they stop using the report. Invest in definitions and data quality before visual polish.