A DIGIT TO A DASHBOARD: My Journey of Transforming a Single Number into a Comprehensive Visualization

Abstract

One fine morning, over a cup of coffee, my boss handed me a single number:?13. Little did I know that this number would become the foundation of a transformative data visualization project. This paper recounts my journey of turning that digit into a dynamic, interactive dashboard that empowered our organization to make informed decisions. Through a series of questions, struggles, and iterative improvements, I discovered a framework for building meaningful visualizations from even the smallest data points. This story is not just about data; it’s about curiosity, creativity, and the power of asking the right questions.

Introduction

It was a typical Monday morning. I was in the office pantry, sipping my coffee and mentally preparing for the week ahead, when my boss walked in. He sat down beside me, handed me a sticky note with the number?13?written on it, and said, “Figure out what this means and see if you can turn it into something useful for the company.”

At first, I was puzzled. What could this number possibly represent? Sales? Revenue? Something else entirely? But as I began to dig deeper, I realized that this was an opportunity to explore the art of data visualization in a way I had never done before. This is the story of how I turned that single digit into a comprehensive dashboard and the lessons I learned along the way.

The Journey Begins: Asking the Right Questions

Step 1: Contextualizing the Number

My first task was to understand what the number?13?meant. I started by asking my boss a few questions:

• Question 1: Is this number related to sales, revenue, or something else?
• Answer: It’s last month’s sales figure.
• Question 2: Is it in millions, thousands, or some other unit?
• Answer: It’s 13 million dollars.

With this context, I had a starting point:?13M in sales for the previous month. But I knew that a single number, even with context, wasn’t enough to drive decisions. I needed more data.?

Step 2: Expanding the Data

I approached the sales team and asked for historical sales data. They provided me with sales figures for the past six months. Now, I had more to work with:

• Question 3: How does 13M compare to previous months? Is it an improvement or a decline?
• Answer: By comparing the numbers, I found that sales had increased by 8% compared to the previous month but were down by 3% compared to the same month last year.

This comparison gave me a clearer picture, but I wanted to go deeper. I asked:

• Question 4: Do we have sales data by product category and geographic region?
• Answer: Yes, the sales team provided a breakdown of sales by product and region.

Now, I had a richer dataset: monthly sales trends, product-level performance, and geographic distribution. But I still needed to figure out how to present this information in a way that would be useful for decision-making.

The Struggles: Turning Data into Insights

This is where the real challenge began. I had the data, but I needed to visualize it effectively. My initial attempts were messy and overwhelming. I created a simple bar chart showing monthly sales, but it didn’t tell the full story. I added a line graph for trends, but it felt disconnected from the other data.

I realized that I needed a more structured approach. I decided to break the dashboard into three key components:

1. A Scorecard: To display the current month’s sales (13M) and the percentage change compared to previous periods.
2. A Trend Chart: To show sales performance over the past six months.
3. A Stacked Bar Chart: To break down sales by product category.

But even with these elements, something was missing. I wanted to show how sales were distributed across different regions. After some research, I discovered?filled maps, which allowed me to visualize geographic sales concentration.

The Breakthrough: Building the Dashboard

With a clear plan in place, I started building the dashboard using?Tableau. Here’s how it came together:

1. Scorecard: I placed the current month’s sales figure (13M) at the top, accompanied by an up/down arrow to indicate the percentage change compared to the previous month and year.
2. Trend Chart: Below the scorecard, I added a line graph showing sales trends over the past six months.
3. Stacked Bar Chart: To the side, I included a bar chart breaking down sales by product category.
4. Filled Map: At the bottom, I added a map highlighting sales concentration by region.

To make the dashboard interactive, I added filters that allowed users to drill down into specific products or regions. For example, clicking on a product in the bar chart would update the map to show sales for that product across different regions.

The Final Product: A Dashboard That Tells a Story

When I presented the dashboard to my boss and the leadership team, they were impressed. The dashboard answered key questions:

• What is the current sales figure??(13M)
• Is this number good or bad compared to previous periods??(Up 8% month-over-month, down 3% year-over-year)
• Which products are driving sales??(The stacked bar chart highlighted the top-performing products.)
• Where are sales concentrated geographically??(The filled map showed which regions were contributing the most.)

The dashboard wasn’t just a collection of charts; it was a tool that empowered the team to make data-driven decisions. For example, they noticed that one region was underperforming and decided to allocate additional resources there. They also identified a product category that was consistently performing well and decided to invest more in its marketing.

Lessons Learned

This journey taught me several valuable lessons:

1. Start with Questions: Every visualization should begin with a question. By asking the right questions, you can uncover the story behind the data.
2. Iterate and Improve: My first attempts were far from perfect, but by iterating and refining, I was able to create a dashboard that truly added value.
3. Keep It Simple: A good dashboard is easy to understand. Avoid clutter and focus on the most important insights.
4. Collaborate: I couldn’t have done this alone. By working with the sales team and other stakeholders, I was able to gather the data and insights I needed.

Conclusion

What started as a simple number on a sticky note turned into a powerful tool that transformed the way our company approached decision-making. This experience showed me that even the smallest data point can be the foundation of something meaningful. Whether you’re a data analyst, a business leader, or just someone curious about data, I hope this story inspires you to ask questions, explore possibilities, and create visualizations that make a difference.

References

1. Few, S. (2012).?Show Me the Numbers: Designing Tables and Graphs to Enlighten. Analytics Press.
2. Tufte, E. R. (2001).?The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. Graphics Press.
3. Tableau. (2023).?Best Practices for Data Visualization. Retrieved from?https://www.tableau.com/visualization/data-visualization-best-practices
4. Microsoft Power BI. (2023).?Creating Interactive Dashboards. Retrieved from?https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/create-reports/