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Key goals and steps of visual dashboard
design
- Reduce the non-data pixels.
- Enhance the data pixels.
A. Eliminate all unnecessary non-data pixels.
B. De-emphasize and regularize the nondata pixels that remain
• Unnecessary borders around sections of data fragment the
display
• Axis lines and gridlines can be useful but should be muted
Avoid complete borders when a single set of axes would
adequately define the space
Variations in colour that don’t encode any
meaning
Unneccesary fill colors to separate sections of the display are
distracting
Eliminate graphics that provide nothing but decoration
• Gradients of fill colour both on the bars and background add distracting non‐data pixels
Grid lines in graphs are not useful
3D should be avoided when the added dimension of
depth doesnt represent actual data
Navigational controls should not take up more space than the visual displays
Instructions take up valuable space. They can be displayed only when needed through a separate screen or popup menu
A. Eliminate all unnecessary data pixels.
B. Highlight the most important data pixels
that remain
Removing less relevant data
Condensing data through:Summaries and Exceptions
Layout of dashboard should not change dynamically
Different regions of a dashboard has different degrees of visual
emphasis
Organise information to support its meaning
and use
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Organise groups according to business functions, entities and Use
• Co‐locate items that belong to the same group
• Delineate groups using the least visible means
• Support meaningful comparisons
• Discourage meaningless comparisons
• Maintain consistency for quick and accurate interpretation
• Make the viewing experience aesthetically pleasing
• Design for use as a launch pad
• Test your design for usability
Support meaningful
comparison
Combining items in a single table or graph (if appropriate)
• Placing items close to one another
• Linking items in different groups using a common colour
• Including comparative values whenever useful for clarity and efficiency: Ratios, Percentages, Actual variances
Maintain consistency for quick and accurate
interpretation
Differences in appearance prompt us to search, consciously or unconsciously, for the significance of those differences
•Maintain consistency not only in the visual appearance of the display media but also in choice of display media
•Never vary the means of display for the sake of variety. Always select the medium that best communicates the data and its message.
Delineate groups using the least visible means
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• Use of white space
• Use of subtle borders (de‐emphasize non‐data pixels)
Story Telling
Why Tell Story?
Make sense and order of the data
• See the whole where there are disparate parts
•Give vision to what the future can look like
•Interactive – people put themselves into stories
• Support an Argument
Steps
What Make a good Story?
•A good story involves characters
•Challenge is believable
•Hurdles to overcome
•Outcome or prognosis is clear
3. Be visual. Use graphs, charts, pictures when possible. Design your graphs for instant readability but allow for layers of meaning as the graph is studied. Use descriptive title, captivating images to get the point across. Apply the design principles you learn. When designing infographics, include the subject’s
theme into the design and display itself.
4. Make it easy for your audience and you. Telling a story should be simple and direct. Recall and
action will be that much stronger. Stick to 2 – 3 key issues and how they relate to your audience
2. Be authentic. Make it personal/emotional. Start with metaphor or anecdote. Develop with data: Authenticity is rooted in facts and facts are rooted in data
5. Invite and direct discussion. Focus on highlighting what the audience needs. Highlight key facts that relate to the story. Extend the story parameters into questions. Invite audience to continue the discussion via group discussion, blogs, intranets, newsgroups
Think of your analysis as a story. Find the story first: explore the data. Determine what you want people to do as a result. Write out the “story board” for your audience
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•Data always tells a Story: Reasons for manufacturing defects. Selling of new ideas. Informing colleagues of a particular customer service
improvement program
•A fact‐based story has to be factual, detail‐oriented and data‐driven but not overwhelming the audience with data and facts without context.