dashboard design

11 articles

How to Wireframe a Dashboard in 5 Steps (Before You Build)Five steps from a vague stakeholder request to a layout you can hand a developer, for Power BI, Tableau, or Looker Studio. No design skills needed.Guides8 min read
7 Common Dashboard Design Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)The same dashboard design mistakes show up in almost every BI project. Here's what they are and how to fix each one before you build.Best Practices7 min read
11 Dashboard Design Decisions That Decide If It Gets UsedThe 11 decisions that separate a dashboard people open daily from one that dies in a folder: one question per view, 3–9 KPIs by audience, layout, and color.Guides14 min read
How Many KPIs on a Dashboard? The 3-Question Audit3–5 for executive, 5–7 for management, 7–9 for operational. The harder question is which ones. Here's the 3-question audit that cuts the rest.Best Practices7 min read
Wireframing for Non-Designers: A Practical GuideYou don't need design skills to wireframe. This guide covers everything BI analysts, product managers, and consultants need to know to wireframe effectively.Guides8 min read
12 Dashboard Layout Patterns, Each Shown as a WireframeKPI rows, quadrants, monitoring walls, mobile card stacks. Twelve layouts, each drawn as a labeled wireframe, with when to use it and when to avoid it.Guides12 min read
12 Power BI Dashboard Rules (Canvas, 10 Visuals, Fast DAX)Power BI specifics, not generic design advice: the 1280×720 canvas, why 8–10 visuals is the real limit, and the DAX and bookmark habits that keep a report fast.Best Practices11 min read
Executive Dashboard Layout: 4 Rows, 5 KPIs, 30 SecondsExecutives give a dashboard 30 seconds. The 4-row layout that survives it, the 3–5 KPIs that earn a spot, and how to refuse 'just one more metric'.Guides10 min read
Tableau Dashboard Rules: Fixed Sizing, Containers, Fast ExtractsTableau specifics, not generic design advice: why fixed sizing beats automatic, how layout containers actually nest, and the extract habits that keep it fast.Best Practices9 min read
How Many Visuals Should Be on a Power BI Dashboard?Aim for 8 or fewer visuals per Power BI report page — 4–6 for executive views. Every visual is a DAX query, so the count drives performance. Here's how to decide the right number and what to do when you have too many.Best Practices6 min read
Can AI Build Your Dashboard? What It Can't Decide for YouAI drafts dashboards, writes DAX, and answers questions in plain English. It still can't pick which dashboard to build or define what revenue means.Strategy7 min read

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