Why Most Power BI Dashboards Fail Executives (Even When the Data Is Perfect)

Read time: 2.5 minutes

What is the best way to Create an Executive Dashboard in Power BI?

1️⃣ Using the Decision to Guide You, Instead of Data
The question asked by the Analyst is “What will I be able to explore” when creating an Executive Dashboard. When creating the Executive Dashboard, the Executive's question is “What am I supposed to do?”
Fix: When creating your Executive Dashboard pages, start each page with the answer to a single clear “decision metric,” for example: revenue vs. target or cost vs. budget.
 
2️⃣ Executives Won’t Click Slicers
Slicers and bookmarks features are not used during meetings/presentations, which are great for Analysts and will rarely be used.
Fix: Pre-build to a visual all the major comparisons i.e., Actual vs Plan, Month vs Month, and Top Drivers.
 
3️⃣ More Visuals = Less Clarity on the Dashboard Page
If there are 20 charts on an Executive Dashboard page, the Executive will view it as complex and not provide any insights.
Fix: Limit all Executive Dashboards to 3 KPIs, 1 trend, and 1 driver visual.
 
4️⃣ Executive Dashboards Should Also Provide Actionable Recommendations
Most historical reporting is very valuable to a leader... however, executives need guidance and recommendations for action.
Fix: Include a “Decision Panel” that summarizes what is different, and what I should do.
 
5️⃣ Root Causes Have to be Obviously Defined
The first question an Executive will ask is, “Why?”
Fix: Use one of the following tools: Variance Waterfalls, Decomposition Trees and or Driver Analysis to show the Executive the root cause, without needing to ask.

💡Key Takeaway: 

The most effective dashboards help leaders make quicker decisions, and data becomes useful only when it eliminates uncertainty.