A data dashboard is a visual display tool that presents key information and metrics in a clear, interactive, and easily digestible format. Often used in monitoring and evaluation, data dashboards help organizations track performance, identify trends, and make informed decisions based on real-time or regularly updated data.
Dashboards typically bring together multiple data sources and present them through charts, graphs, tables, or other visual elements. Users can often filter, sort, or drill down into the data to explore specific areas of interest. Dashboards can be simple or complex, depending on the audience and purpose—ranging from internal management dashboards to public-facing platforms for transparency and accountability.
Key features of data dashboards: #
- Real-time monitoring: Data dashboards allow users to see up-to-date data for quick insights.
- Data visualization: They make complex data easier to understand through visuals like bar charts, pie charts, and trend lines.
- Customization: Data dashboards can be tailored to user needs, focusing on the most relevant indicators and performance metrics.
- Interactivity: They enable users to explore and interact with the data, often with filtering and comparison tools.
Benefits of data dashboards include: #
- Data dashboards enhance decision-making by providing timely, actionable insights.
- They promote transparency and accountability.
- They save time by consolidating information into one accessible platform.
A data dashboard is, thus, a powerful tool for simplifying data communication, helping stakeholders stay informed and responsive to changes and outcomes within a project or organization.
List of recommended resources #
For a broad overview #
How to Build Excel Interactive Dashboards
This video by Kevin Stratvert gives a step-by-step tutorial on how to create interactive and dynamic Excel dashboards. Stratvert gives an overview of the data as well as explains various tools that can be used to create and customize the dashboard.
Using Data Dashboards for Research
This post by Rahil Virani for Research Data Services, University of Wisconsin-Madison gives an overview of data dashboards and their importance in research domains along with various examples of data dashboards to check out for better understanding.
For in-depth understanding #
This article by Team Sigma gives an in-depth understanding of data dashboards, why they are important for business as well as introduces the different types of dashboards in use. Additionally, the article also explains how dashboards work and some of the common mistakes that come up while using dashboards.
What is a Data Dashboard? Definition, Benefits, and Examples
This article by Marija Hladni for Databox gives a broad understanding of data dashboards and data visualizations. Hladni also explains the benefits of data dashboards as well as the different types of dashboards in use along with the types of KPIs and metrics that can be tracked in data dashboards.
Case study #
This research paper by David Concannon, Abraham Jacobuc-Herbst, and Ed Manley outlines the creation and assessment of a framework for data dashboard design, tailored to visualize datasets from a demographic health surveillance site. The study aims to develop a flexible, scalable, and reusable dashboard framework that meets the specific needs of the setting.
GovTech Maturity Index, 2022 Update: Trends in Public Sector Digital Transformation
This 2022 GTMI update report by World Bank and the accompanying dataset and new data dashboard present the progress in public sector digital transformation within the last two years, highlighting some of the good practices, and identifying existing gaps for possible improvements in countries at the technology frontier.
