A dashboard cannot help you communicate your data effectively if you don’t know how to build it. Having a dashboard will not make you data-driven, having a useful dashboard will. A useful dashboard is the one which is understood just by having a glance at it. There are 5 stages to make a useful dashboard:
Stage 1: Curiosity
Identifying the need for being data-driven but not what has to be done to become data-driven.
Stage 2: Play
Building your first dashboard and analyzing data. However, you haven’t identified the right business tools and processes.
Stage 3: Clutter
Manipulating the data by sharing the dashboard with colleagues and discussing with them. Business metrics are to be identified to reach business goals.
Stage 4: Clean Up
Deciding business goals and metrics that align to achieve the goals. The ownership of metric is not yet identified.
Stage 5: Focus
Understanding what data is driving the business and what can be done to achieve the goals. Being data-driven.
Dashboards are never static, they change as your business goals change.
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