8 articles
The same dashboard design mistakes show up in almost every BI project. Here's what they are and how to fix each one before you build.
The 11 design decisions that determine whether a dashboard gets used: one question per dashboard, 3–9 KPIs by audience, the right chart types, layout, color, filters, and the wireframe step that catches mistakes early.
Short answer: 3–5 KPIs for executive dashboards, 5–7 for management, 7–9 for operational. Here's the research behind those numbers — and a 3-question audit to cut everything else.
A visual guide to the 12 most effective dashboard layout patterns — KPI rows, quadrants, monitoring walls, mobile card stacks and more — each shown as a labeled wireframe with when to use it and when to avoid it.
Power BI-specific best practices — not generic design advice. Canvas size, the 10-visual limit, KPI cards, tooltips, bookmarks, drill-through, and the DAX and performance habits that keep reports fast.
Executives give a dashboard 30 seconds. This guide covers the 4-row layout that survives that glance: 3–5 KPIs mapped to strategic questions, one trend, one breakdown, and how to refuse the 'just one more metric' request.
Tableau-specific best practices — not generic design advice. Fixed sizing, layout containers, dashboard actions, Viz in Tooltip, the Device Designer, and the extract and Performance Recorder habits that keep dashboards fast.
Aim for 8 or fewer visuals per Power BI report page — 4–6 for executive views. Every visual is a DAX query, so the count drives performance. Here's how to decide the right number and what to do when you have too many.