Organized data provides you with insight to make strategic decisions- it puts you steps ahead.
Dashboards can help you transform complex information into actionable, relevant and timely information. A real-time dashboard makes your data analysis better; it provides insight on the go so you can make decisions based on accurate current data.
To get the best of your real-time dashboard, it must possess certain features. In this article, we will describe what a dashboard is; the benefits of using one and the features your Real-time dashboard must possess to achieve your business objectives.
Dashboard Software: What is it?
Dashboard software is an information management tool that presents business data, key performance indexes and more indicators as an interactive and customizable visual representation.
It tracks data, enables it to be presented as graphs, charts and more and is responsive so it can be drilled to get accurate data.
Benefits of Dashboard Software
Dashboard software enables you to get accurate data without having to code by yourself. It empowers your team with the insight to take action across all levels, as team members can easily create, automate, and share charts and reports to any member of the team.
A professional business dashboard allows you to access critical information at any point.
The benefits of dashboard software include:
Unified View of your Key Performance Indicators and Business Metrics
You get a consistent view of your Key Performance Indicators at a glance, even when it is connected to data from multiple sources.
With that, anyone, even a non-technical user can access relevant data without assistance from a technical unit.
Ease of Use and Flexibility
With a professional business dashboard, anyone can easily create and analyze data via a dashboard by using drag-and-drop tools. Before, the technical team would have to spend a lot of time coding to get any information.
Data can also be easily accessed through various devices at any time.
Increased Business Efficiency
Dashboards minimize the chances of errors. It is also fast, easy to use, and automated- reducing the risks of making business decisions based on incorrect data and freeing up time for other business pursuits.
Professional business dashboards give you reliable, trusted information to work with.
Features Your Dashboard Software Must Have
Dashboards are not all the same; they have significant differences from one another. Some might be quite complicated, while others are easy; some might have multiple features while others are limitless. But to function effectively, your real-time dashboard must have key features such as :
Interactive Dashboard
Your dashboard must be interactive and responsive. It must have detailed and dynamic text and image fields.
One of the most important features is the ability to drill-down into the detailed information you need. Drilling down enables you to access detailed, specific, and accurate information, splitting up a key performance indicator into further information if desired. It gives you the big picture and allows you to have granular micro views.
A time interval widget is another feature of an interactive dashboard. A time interval widget enables you to adjust time scales on your dashboard alongside interactive drill-downs. With a time interval widget, you can move to a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly view of data.
A chart zoom, on the other hand, allows you to see a 30,000-foot view of your data. You can zoom down to a sixty-second-time chart that way.
Lastly, a click-to-filter allows users to filter values to gain new insights.
Cross-platform accessibility
Accessibility from any device is a crucial feature of a modern dashboard.
With the advent of cloud technology, data is easily shareable and accessible across multiple devices. Dashboards must therefore be accessible by many devices, including mobile phones.
Dashboards must be consistently updated, available, and accessible by tablets, mobile phones, and desktop computers.
Dashboards must enable the use of data on the go.
Intelligent Data Alerts
Real-time dashboards pass data across all the time, but it is not expected that anyone would be paid to sit and watch the data as it is displayed.
A dashboard should be set to provide alerts when actionable insight is detected. For instance, you might set thresholds or goals at which the dashboard informs you. A dashboard with AI functionalities will help you detect data that help you address problems before they escalate, or inform you that you have achieved certain goals.
A dashboard should also be set up to intelligently answer your questions. With AI functionalities, you should be able to input queries and get relevant insight that may answer them.
User Role Management
Which users have access, and to what levels?
Dashboards should empower you to set up different levels of control and access to data,
You should be able to assign one or more persons as administrators.
As administrators, they have the power to make numerous changes such as allowing or restricting access, determining what aspects of data can be accessed by other users, adding or removing filters, and more. The admin can also delete or edit data sources.
Just below the level of the administrator is the editor. While the editor cannot delete data sources, he can assign users to dashboards.
After the editor is the power viewer, who is just above the viewer. While he cannot edit or remove data sources, he can add viewers.
Meanwhile, the viewer can only access and view the charts.
Customization
Dashboards should be customizable. Teams should be able to structure their data to meet their personal business needs.
Dashboards should enable teams to determine what type of data they need and how it appears. Furthermore, it should enable them to create custom fields to get the best out of their data.
Conclusion
Dashboards can have numerous other features, but we have only identified some that will keep you ahead in your business. Sound business decisions are based on data, and a well-designed dashboard keeps you ahead.
