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[zz]Dashboard Confusion

照样转载出来，出处：http://www.perceptualedge.com/articles/ie/dashboard_confusion.pdf

Perceptual Edge Dashboard Design

    
Once again, marketing alchemists have cooked up a bowl of confusion
with only a few simple ingredients. Everyone in the business
intelligence (BI) space is wild about dashboards, but few proponents
are talking about the same thing. This state of perplexity often occurs
after the birth of a new buzzword. Around a decade ago, I remember
asking my IBM account manager how IBM defined the new term in vogue at
the time — data warehousing. His response was classic and refreshingly
honest: "By data warehousing, we mean whatever the customer thinks it means.
" In other words, no matter what data warehousing means to you, we do it (and are ready to accept your purchase order for it).

Dashboard Differences


    
What is a dashboard? We need a useful definition since communication
isn't possible without a common understanding. Defining something
usually involves identifying the common characteristics observed in a
population of examples. However, the name dashboard is used by diverse
phenomena today. The only common threads are that dashboards appear on
computer screens and involve information. That's hardly a useful
definition. Take a look at the results from recent Internet research to
see how the term is applied.
     In "New Digital Dashboards Help Drive Decisions" (BtoB, July 14, 2003), Jeffrey Schwartz states:

    
Is a dashboard just the latest fashionable term for the "customized
views" of "analytics or business intelligence software"?
     When I
visited DataWarehousingOnline.com and clicked on Executive Dashboard
articles, I received 18 Web pages of links. The exact same links
appeared when I separately clicked Balanced Scorecard, Data Quality and
Integration, and Data Mining. Either the links weren't working
properly, or this site believes that all these terms refer to the same
thing. Sadly, this is a fairly accurate portrayal of how the term is
used, but not a very useful definition.

Mistaken Identity


    
Some ascribe a meaning to the term "dashboard" that is synonymous with
the term "portal". The Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing defines
"digital dashboard" as "a personalized desktop portal that focuses on
business intelligence and knowledge management." I concede that
dashboards can be used as portals, serving as launch pads to various
sources of information, but to equate dashboards and portals is a
misunderstanding that robs both of
their unique character and contribution.
     In contrast to those cited, the following description specifies very distinct characteristics of a dashboard:

    
The fact that a dashboard presents data is definitely central to the
concept, but must it connect to any XML and HTML data source and be
enabled by intelligent agents that never stop their feverish
bidirectional communication with data sources? This specification
strikes me as overly dependent on or biased toward particular
technologies.
     In my opinion, the best definition found by
searching the Internet appears in a paper written by Dan Dubriwny and
Kurt Rivards of Advizor Solutions: "Are You Drowning in BI Reports?
Using Analytical Dashboards to Cut Through the Clutter."

They
provide visibility into key performance indicators (KPIs) through
simple visual graphics such as gauges, charts and tables within a web
browser.

Dashboards are appealing because they:

• Present a wide number of different metrics in a single consolidated view
• Roll up details into high-level summaries
•
Provide intuitive indicators, such as gauges and stoplights, that are
instantly understandable - for example, red bar means problem,green bar
means everything is on plan.

In
many respects a reporting dashboard can be likened to a dashboard in an
automobile. It provides an 'at-a-glance view' of the current
operational state ofthe vehicle.

    
Now we're getting somewhere. Characteristics such as "metrics in a
single consolidated view," "high-level summaries," and "intuitive
indicators ... that are instantly understandable" tell us something
useful about the essential nature of dashboards.

A Working Definition


    
Ready to pin it down? My bias is simple: I want a definition that
captures the essence of this thing we call a dashboard, expressing it
in a way that is meaningful and useful. I want to promote a definition
we can all share, so we can move on to fruitful discussions about how
we can use dashboards most effectively as a medium of insightful
business information. I don't want to define the term to uniquely
specify any particular BI vendor's solution.
     I believe that the
real meaning of a dashboard is not based on any particular type of
information (such as KPIs), but in the way it displays information to
serve a particular purpose. This can be expressed in a single sentence:
     A
dashboard is a visual display of the most important information needed
to achieve one or more objectives; consolidated and arranged on a
single screen so the information can be monitored at a glance.


    
Just as the automobile's dashboard provides all the critical
information needed to operate the vehicle at a glance, a BI dashboard
serves a similar purpose whether you're using it to make strategic
decisions for a huge corporation, run the daily operations of a team,
or perform tasks that involve no one but yourself. The means is a
single-screen display; the purpose is to efficiently keep in touch with
the information needed to do something.

Additional Characteristics


     This is the fundamental nature of dashboards. Now let's add some supporting attributes
required for dashboards to do their job effectively.

• High-level summaries.
The information displayed in a dashboard should consist primarily of
high-level summaries, including exceptions, to communicate at a glance.
It quickly tells you what's happening, but not why it's happening, just
like the gauges, meters, and indicator lights on a car. Diagnosis
requires further investigation and detail. A dashboard can serve as the
starting point for this investigation, letting you drill down into
further detail to perform an analysis, but this feature isn't required
for something to be called a dashboard.
• Concise, clear, and intuitive display mechanisms.
Display mechanisms that clearly state their message without taking up
much space are required so the entire collection of information will
fit into the limited real estate of a single screen. If a graphical
representation that looks like a fuel gauge, traffic signal, or
thermometer is relevant and appropriate for a particular piece of
information, that's what you should use. However, insisting on sexy
widgets or displays similar to those found in a car when other
mechanisms would work better is counterproductive.
• Customized.
The information on a dashboard must be tailored specifically to the
requirements of a given person, group, or function; otherwise, it won't
serve its purpose to help achieve specific objectives.

     Have I left anything out?

• Metrics or KPIs?
In most cases, dashboards are all about measurements. Monitoring
performance typically relies on metrics, but useful information isn't
always quantitative, such as a list of new prospective sales leads or
the imminent due dates of a project. If the job requires measures that
have been officially defined as KPIs, you should include them, but not
exclusively when other information is required as well.
• Real-time information?
If dashboard users need real-time information to achieve their
objectives, then the dashboard should display it. Otherwise, periodic
snapshots work fine.
• Web browsers?
If the best available
infrastructure is the Internet or an intranet, the dashboard should be
viewed through a Web browser. However, there is nothing about a
dashboard that necessitates a specific architectural platform, like a
Web browser.

     A dashboard is a type of display or
style of presentation, not a specific type of information or
technology. Keep this distinction clear, and you will be free to focus
on what really matters: using dashboards to work faster and smarter.
That's a worthwhile topic for another day.

     (This article was originally published in Intelligent Enterprise
.)
__________________________________________________________________________
About the Author


 
   Stephen Few has worked for over 20 years as an IT innovator,
consultant, and teacher. Today, as Principal of the consultancy
Perceptual Edge, Stephen focuses on data visualization for analyzing
and communicating quantitative business information. He provides
training and consulting services, writes the monthly Visual Business
Intelligence Newsletter, speaks frequently at conferences, and teaches
in the MBA program at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the
author of two books: Show Me the Numbers: Designing Tables and Graphs to Enlighten
and Information Dashboard Design: The Effective Visual Communication of Data
. You can learn more about Stephen's work and access an entire library
of articles at www.perceptualedge.com
. Between articles, you can read Stephen's thoughts on the industry in his blog
.