Introduction: The "White Elephant" in the Room
For any manager tasked
with monthly reporting, the process is painfully familiar: hours spent pulling
data from disparate sources, struggling to create a connected view, only to
produce a static report that's outdated the moment it's finished. In response,
organizations have built countless dashboards promising a real-time,
data-driven view into every corner of the business. Yet, many of these
meticulously crafted tools end up as digital "white
elephants"—expensive assets that consume time and money but sit unused,
providing little to no real value.
The core problem isn't
the technology, the choice of chart, or the color scheme. The difference
between a high-value dashboard and a digital paperweight lies in the strategic
framework behind it. A dashboard's success begins long before the first line of
code is written and continues long after it has been launched.
There are five
counter-intuitive but critical rules that can transform a dashboard from a
static report into a dynamic tool that drives action and delivers a measurable
return on investment (ROI).
Rule #1: Start
with a Mission, Not a Metric
Before any design or
development, the first step must be to write a single, clear sentence that
defines the dashboard's fundamental purpose. An organization has a mission
statement to explain why it exists and to guide its strategic objectives. As
the principle goes, "What’s true for a business is true for your
dashboard!"
Example: Action
Dashboard Mission A clear
mission statement for a dashboard tracking organizational tasks could be:
Improve action
management efficiency by reducing overdue actions and prioritising criticality.
This mission statement
immediately forces you to answer questions like: "Is this tool for
flagging data quality issues? Is it for highlighting overdue actions? Or is it
for identifying long-term strategic trends?" By defining the primary goal
upfront, you create a guiding principle for every subsequent decision.
This mission becomes a
powerful filter. If a proposed chart doesn't directly serve the goal of
reducing overdue actions or prioritizing by criticality, it doesn't belong.
Period.
Rule #2: Define
Its Paycheck Before It's Built
Creating a dashboard
is an investment of time and money. Like any business investment, it must have
a clear value proposition, or benefit case, that proves it will derive greater
value than its cost. There are three core ways a dashboard provides this value:
- Time efficiency gains: Automating an existing manual process
frees up employees for higher-value work. For example, a dashboard that
automatically calculates a department's risk rating might save a risk
manager four hours every month, which can be reallocated to more strategic
activities.
- Improved data quality: Using the dashboard to identify and flag
errors, incomplete assessments, or missing data prevents costly mistakes.
Inaccurate data can lead to poor decisions and regulatory penalties.
Furthermore, inaccurate data breeds distrust. When users lose confidence,
they create their own shadow reports, leading to wasted resources,
conflicting data, and organizational friction.
- New business insights: A well-designed dashboard allows you to
interrogate data in new ways, breaking down business silos and revealing
trends that were previously invisible. This can uncover process
inefficiencies or highlight high-performing departments, leading to better
decision-making.
A financial services
provider highlighted the tangible benefits of a well-defined dashboard:
"In summary, this
dashboard has saved countless resource sparing hours which would have been
spent in summarising and analysing this substantial set of information via more
manual means, whilst having instant valuable insight and confidence in the accuracy
of data." - Group Risk Officer, financial services provider
Rule #3: Design
for Action, Not Just Answers
To be valuable, a
dashboard must provide information that leads to action. A simple test of a
dashboard's utility is whether it can answer not just the "first
question," but also the "second question." The first question is
a basic data point, while the second is a query that moves you toward a
decision.
Example: Incident
Dashboard
- First Question: "How many extreme incidents did you
experience?"
- A simple chart shows the answer is 1.
- Second Question: "In which business unit did the
extreme incident happen?"
- With an effective filter, you can quickly
determine the incident occurred in Marketing and communications,
which prompts a specific follow-up with that department's management.
The ability to answer
the second question is what separates a dashboard from a report. A report tells
you what happened. A tool designed for the second question tells you where
to look and what to do next, transforming data from a historical record
into a launchpad for action.
Rule #4: Don't
Just Launch It, Socialize It
Even a technically
perfect dashboard will fail if it is poorly documented and communicated.
Success requires a clear communication strategy, comprehensive user guides,
practical training, and a well-defined owner for ongoing support.
It is a mistake to
assume users will automatically understand how to use a dashboard or its
underlying data. Crucially, this documentation shouldn't just explain what a
chart shows; it must teach users how to use the dashboard to answer both their
"first and second questions," effectively providing a playbook for
turning insight into action. Without a support framework to answer questions
and address issues, user confidence and usage will inevitably
"deteriorate" over time. A dashboard's success is as much about
people and process as it is about technology.
Rule #5: Build a
Smart Car, Not a Spaceship
One of the most common
mistakes is trying to do too much at once. Overloading a dashboard with
excessive data and analysis creates two significant risks: poor technical
performance (it becomes too slow to use) and functional confusion (users can't
find a clear picture of priorities).
The most effective
approach is to start small with a focused objective. Launch a functional
version, and then gather feedback to build a roadmap for future improvements.
Involving the right people in this process is crucial. In addition to
end-users, you need:
- The functional owner (e.g., risk manager) to survey users and
prioritize feedback.
- The technical owner (e.g., risk analyst or IT developer) to
triage feedback and estimate effort.
- The risk software vendor to provide design advice and advise on
new product features.
- Executive leadership to champion the process and encourage
compliance.
This iterative process
creates a "virtuous circle of driving system uptake," as users see
their suggestions incorporated and find increasing value in the tool.
"The time taken
to understand what the business needs and how Protecht can deliver it has
resulted in the further development of dashboards to support reporting." -
Risk and Compliance Governance Manager, financial services provider
Conclusion: From
Data Points to Decision Power
Ultimately, a
high-value dashboard is not a mere collection of charts but a strategic
asset—an engine for decision-making engineered with a clear purpose, a defined
ROI, and an unwavering focus on action. By moving beyond visual design and
focusing on these five strategic rules, you can ensure your dashboards become
indispensable tools that deliver true business value.
Now, take a look at
your own tools. How do your dashboards shape up against these five rules?
