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A dashboard template is a valuable tool used to consolidate valuable information into a summary. Information is the most expensive commodity in a data-driven world. This information must be right and presented in the best possible manner.
What is a Dashboard template?
A dashboard template gives you a quick view of the key performance indicators in just a single place. You can get a high-level view of your company’s work by using a KPI dashboard Excel as a tool for business. It also helps you in making quick decisions based on data. Here are a few types of dashboard templates;
Strategic Dashboards
This type of dashboard helps you in performing actions and making decisions with strategies. You can do this by tracking performance relevant to key indicators to assist you to understand them better.
Analytic Dashboards
These dashboards pay attention to assist you to compare past data so that you can determine spikes, drops, and trends. You can use analytical dashboards for interactive use as they involve lots of drill-downs and pivot tables.
Operational Dashboards
It displays daily metrics so that you can get a quick view of your company’s day-to-day performance.
Preparing to create your Excel dashboard:
You should consider the following preparation first before creating your dashboard report template;
Importing data into Excel
You must first know how to import your data into Excel before creating a sales or project management dashboard template. There are various ways to do this with varying levels of complexity on the basis of where your data currently exists. To import your data, research the best method. You may also like the funeral program template.
Clean up your data
You must be familiar with how to work with data within Excel. It is very important that you should know each piece of information has its own cell. Take time to clean up first if your existing Excel spreadsheet is in a mess. Place the information into suitable rows and columns. While you are at it, identify then for any errors or typos and check the data. This is also the accurate time to find out duplicate information that you require to delete.
Furthermore, each row of data must be unique in case you want to use the dashboard feature. If you want to search for duplicates in Excel, highlight the entire set of data then click the Remove Duplicates button. Also, it is suggested to keep your original data set somewhere else before proceeding.
Set up your workbook
The formation of the dashboard template needs 3 separate tabs or sheets within the Excel notebook;
- The first sheet has a name that you can easily recognize such as ‘Raw Data’ or ‘Data.’ This tab includes all of your raw data.
- Give a second sheet name as “Chart Data.” Here you keep the data that you require to feed into the different charts of your dashboard.
- Indicate the third sheet ‘Dashboard.’ This is the section ‘Dashboard.’ You can leave the last two sheets blank for now. The most essential thing at this point is to get your workbook ready.
Understand the requirements you require
You will realize the vast number of options that you can use after familiarizing yourself with Excel dashboards. You have to be very clear on the reason behind your first dashboard as these options can feel overwhelming. You will feel empowered to create a dashboard when you consider the reason why you’re creating a dashboard.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, a dashboard template is a valuable tool that can handle any type of data from several purposes and markets. Different elements such as tables, charts, gauges, and figures are included in almost all Excel dashboards. They help you present the data.
