Designing Dashboards that Deliver

While writing Dashboards That Deliver, we conducted a survey of over 450 dashboard creators and users and asked them this question:

To what degree do you agree with the statement “most dashboards fail” ?

71% indicated that they agree or strongly agree with this statement.

But what do successful dashboards have in common?

They focus on what their users need from the data, not just spinning up shiny charts.

"Start with your audience" is one of the first slides in most good data viz trainings, but we often skip over how to do that efffectively.

We need to understand who our potential users are, why they need a new dashboard, and how and when they'll use the dashboard. That goes beyond layout and color choices: we're building an interactive, analytical tool, which meets users where they are now and evolve as needs change.

Many dashboard workshops focus on teaching how to use a specific tool. Or they're focused only on the charts and design decisions, like how to use color, text, and filters to guide your users, that make up what you see on your screen. This workshop is different.

During this workshop, you'll learn how to think like a dashboard design expert and implement a user-centered, Agile approach when designing new dashboards or updating existing ones.

You'll learn from real world scenarios that bring the concepts from Dashboards That Deliver off the page. We'll design a new dashboard through a two day 'design sprint' approach that will keep you on your toes (even though we're not writing python, VizQL, or DAX).

You'll leave with a roadmap you can adapt and implement in your work to develop more effective dashboardes, whether you're working as a team of one or part of a 100+ person analytics team.

Note that the workshop will run both Tuesday, October 7 and Wednesday, October 8 from 9AM to 4PM . Your workshop pass includes both days, though Eventbrite limitations only show one day on the event description.

Info: We'll open with a deep dive into the Dashboards That Deliver framework, including user-centered design and Agile principles that informed our approach to dashboard development. Then, we'll dive into how to conduct effective Discovery with future dashboard users and dive into our use case for the workshop. You'll practice planning and synthesizing your Discovery findings and use the outcomes as your north star as we work through our design sprint.

Info: In the afternoon, we'll explore how to use wireframes and prototypes as effective product increments when you're developing a new dashboard, including real world examples showing how sketches translated into final designs. You'll learn about how different chart types suit different analytical needs, practice sketching design concepts for a provided use case, and engage in user feedback sessions.

Info: On Day 2, we'll revisit our protypes from Day #1 and evaluate how our designs connect with the user needs. Then, we'll refine our designs with considerations around meaningful text, purposeful use of color, and decluttering to improve the overall look and feel of your dashboard concept.

Info: With the design completed, we'll map our launch plan: how will we get users to adopt our dashboard? You'll learn from best practices from dozens of interviews for Dashboards That Deliver, stories of dashboard failure, and have the opportunity to learn from other participants. Then, we'll explore strategies for gathering feedback, managing enhancement requests, and monitoring our success metrics.

Host or Publisher @abmakulec