BUSI2001 Chap.4 Tableau Dashboard Development
Tableau Dashboard Development
A dashboard brings several visualisations together so that any reader can see the state of a business in one place. This chapter distinguishes the dashboard types the course names, from executive and KPI dashboards to operations and website views, and follows the lecture demonstration that builds an airline dashboard sheet by sheet.
It explains why indicator tiles should show averages rather than sums, why ratios belong in calculated fields that recompute for each filter, and how the lecture's housekeeping checklist repairs a first draft. The guiding rule is that the story comes first: decide the headline finding, then build only the sheets and controls that prove or qualify it.
The same discipline helps any written report, because a dashboard is simply an argument made with charts instead of paragraphs.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Dashboard types
- 02
Story-first design
- 03
Sheets and titles
- 04
Average versus sum
- 05
Calculated fields
- 06
Filters and interactivity
- 07
Static versus interactive
- 08
Housekeeping review
Worked example · free
Repairing a first-draft airline dashboard
- +1Business rate = 1,380 / 2,000 = 69.0%.
- +1Economy rate = 950 / 2,500 = 38.0%; economy plus rate = 140 / 500 = 28.0%.
- +1Switch indicator tiles from Sum to Average and fix the blank tile's aggregation.
- +1Remove duplicate headers and delete the slider, which a static report cannot use.
- +1Retitle the dashboard with the finding: satisfaction falls from 69% to 28% below business class.
Key terms
- KPI dashboard
- A dashboard that tracks a small set of key performance indicators against targets.
- Measure Names
- A Tableau field that lists several measures together so they can be shown side by side.
- Dashboard filter
- A control that limits every connected sheet to a chosen slice of the data.
- Static report
- A dashboard exported for reading only, in which sliders and filters cannot be used.
- Operations dashboard
- A dashboard that monitors live, detailed activity a team needs to act on quickly.
- Housekeeping review
- A final check of titles, aggregations, labels and controls before a dashboard is shared.
Tableau Dashboard Development FAQ
What makes a dashboard tell a story?
A story dashboard starts from one headline finding and arranges only the sheets that support or qualify it. The lecture advises building around a core idea and refining iteratively, making everything readable for non-analytical audiences. Titles that state findings, consistent definitions and few controls keep the reader on the message.
Should every dashboard be interactive?
No. Interactivity helps when readers will explore, for example by filtering to one class or region. A dashboard exported as a static report should carry no slider or filter, because nobody can use it, and surplus controls distract. Decide the delivery format before adding interactive elements.
Why use a calculated field for a ratio?
Tableau filters first and aggregates afterwards, so a ratio built as SUM of one measure divided by SUM of another recalculates correctly for every slice. Averaging pre-computed row ratios gives small groups the same weight as large ones and usually produces a different, misleading figure.
How many sheets should a dashboard hold?
As few as the story needs. The lecture example uses seven sheets for a full airline overview, but a weekly manager's view may need only three. Each sheet should support or qualify the headline finding; if removing a sheet would not change what the reader concludes, it probably does not belong on the dashboard.
Assessment move
Rebuild the lecture's airline dashboard yourself, one sheet at a time, before attempting the workshop's open task. For each sheet, write the finding it is meant to show and check its aggregation against the housekeeping list: meaningful title, averages for indicators, values that display, no surplus headers, and no controls on a static page.
Then create one calculated field for a rate and confirm that it changes correctly when you filter by class. For the workshop task, write your headline sentence before opening Tableau and choose three or four sheets that support it. Show the finished dashboard to a classmate and ask what they think the main message is; if it differs from your headline, change the layout rather than adding explanation.
Record that test and what you changed in your portfolio reflection, because it demonstrates the iterative improvement the topic asks for. Keep a short design log for each dashboard you build, listing the audience, the headline, the sheets and the controls, and what changed after feedback. The log is quick to write and becomes ready-made evidence of iterative improvement for your portfolio.
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