Define Clear Objectives: Before starting to build your dashboard, take time to clearly define the objectives and intended users. Make sure to understand the key questions the dashboard needs to answer and the specific decisions it aims to inform. Having clear objectives will help guide your design and ensure the dashboard is useful.
Use Visual Elements Like Charts and Colors: Financial dashboards should incorporate visual elements like charts, graphs, color coding, and conditional formatting to quickly convey insights and trends at a glance. Pie charts, bar graphs, line charts etc. are great for comparing metrics over time or across categories. Consistent colors can highlight areas needing attention.
Keep it Simple: Avoid overcrowding the dashboard with too many numbers, charts or unnecessary details. Focus on only the 2-5 most important metrics and KPIs. A simpler, cleaner layout allows users to easily digest the most critical information without having to sift through excessive data.
Provide Context with Descriptions: Ensure each metric and visual included has a clear description or label so users understand what precisely is being presented. Provide context on how the numbers should be interpreted and if there are any targets or benchmarks for comparison.
Enable Filtering and Drill-Down: Consider including filtering options to allow users to view the dashboard data by different dimensions like date range, department, location etc. Drill-down capabilities let users easily access underlying reports or data with more granular details as needed. This enhances flexibility and analysis.
Use Consistent Formatting: Appoint consistent styling for things like fonts, colors, layout, and naming conventions to provide visual consistency across the dashboard. This makes it easier for users to navigate and mentally process the information.
Include Prior Period Comparisons: Incorporate comparisons to prior periods like last month, last quarter or last year through things like actual vs. target lines on charts. Seeing variances helps users quickly assess performance and trends over time.
Pay Attention to Page Layout: The visual layout and organization of sections, charts and metrics impact usability. Group related information together and use whitespace effectively to prevent clutter. Optimize for landscape or portrait viewing as appropriate.
Enable Interactivity: Leverage Excel’s dynamic features by making cells, charts, and other visuals interactive. For example, allow filters to update dependent charts automatically. Drill-down capabilities from summary cells to details. Enable what-if scenario modeling by linking input cells.
Consider Mobile Optimization: For dashboards used regularly on mobile, test readability on smaller screens. Simplify visuals as needed and allow functional filtering in a compact layout. Progressive web apps or Power BI may be better suited for frequent mobile access.
Get Input from Stakeholders: Involve intended users and decision makers during development to ensure their main reporting and analysis needs are fulfilled. Solicit feedback on prototyped versions for improvements prior to final deployment.
Set a Cadence for Refreshing: To retain usefulness, assign responsibility and automation for refresh frequencies based on how often the underlying data changes. Daily, weekly, or monthly automatic updates keep the insights current.
Track Adoption Metrics: Implement Google Analytics or other tools to discretely track dashboard usage over time. Understand what content drives the most interaction to continuously enhance and focus on highest priority analysis needs.
Provide Training and Support: Upon initial rollout, offer training sessions to help users learn navigation and maximize the analysis capabilities. Provide ongoing help resources like guides, hotline support or embedded tips for adoption and addressing pain-points over the long-term.
Financial dashboards are most effective when they inform high-level decisions through presentation of only the clearest, most diagnostic insights in an easily digestible visual format. Following these design best practices can help ensure Excel dashboards clearly convey critical metrics and KPIs to drive better business performance.