From Data to Dashboards

November, 2014 | Ulrich Atz @statshero

Introductions

Your name
Where youve come from
Role
Your aims/expectations for this
session.

Outcomes

Youll have an overview of how dashboards help make

sense of data

You can articulate design choices for your dashboard

You know some software solutions to create

dashboards

Discussion
What / where is dashboard?

EXAMPLES OF
DATA DASHBOARDS

http://www.perceptualedge.com/example7.php

OKs Global Open Data Index

http://global.census.okfn.org/

Stephen Few
http://www.pe
rceptualedge.
com

http://epp.eur
ostat.ec.euro
pa.eu/

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.
Stephen Few

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.
Stephen Few

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.
Stephen Few

Exercise
1. Your turn: go to http://data.london.gov.uk
2. Find the dashboard and think of three comments
3. Use Juice Labs template to categorise the dashboard

Juice Labs (2009).

A Guide to
Creating
Dashboards
People Love to

Exercise
1. Sign up for a free account with http://geckoboard.com
2. Create a simple dashboard by linking one of your
social media (or other data).

3. Prepare to show it off to the group

How could it be useful?

Why did you choose your metrics?

Did you make any design choices?

Leading practice
1. Have a purpose
2. Information at a glance
3. Less is more

4. Use as a means, not an end

5. Keep your dashboard a dashboard

Data isnt like your kids, you dont

have to pretend to love them equally.
Amanda Cox, NYT graphics

Thank you!

HOW (NOT) TO
VISUALISE YOUR DATA

Non-traditional
use of chart
types

Arbitrariness of double axes

Selective use of data

http://ampp3d.mirror.co.uk/2014/05/16/11-mistakes-that-will-drive-data-nerds-crazy/

Finding a meaningless correlation

http://www.tylervigen.com/

Charts that use ALL THE DATA

Y-axis does not

start at zero