How to Create Advanced Excel Dashboards

Introduction

An Excel Dashboard is an interactive data visualization tool used to summarize key data points for businesses. It is used to help business owners and decision-makers quickly identify trends and make informed decisions. Excel Dashboards also provide a graphical representation of data trends, which makes data more accessible and understandable.

Using advanced Excel Dashboards, businesses can track their metrics more efficiently, identify opportunities and risks, and make better decisions. Excel Dashboards provide the following benefits:

• Easy-to-read data visualization
• Ability to quickly identify trends
• Increased accuracy in data analysis
• Powerful decision-making capabilities

Create an Establish Table

Creating an establish table is an essential part of creating an advanced Excel dashboard. It is what makes the dashboard stand out and look professional. Here are the steps to create an establish table in Excel.

Prep Your Data

Before you can create an establish table, you will need to prepare your data. You should look at the data and see what columns need to be adjusted, removed, or added. You should also examine the data and see if there are any patterns or trends that you want to be highlighted in your dashboard. Once you have gone through your data, you can start to create your establish table.

Build the Basis of Your Excel Dashboard

Creating an establish table is just the beginning. You need to build the basis of your Excel dashboard. This includes adding charts, graphs, and other visual elements to the dashboard to help it stand out and be more informative. You can also add interactive elements, such as drop-down menus and filter menus, to help users better interact with the dashboard. Finally, you should add labeling and formatting to the dashboard to make it easier to read and understand.

Inserting a Chart

Creating an advanced Excel dashboard requires inserting visual representations of data. Doing so not only looks more professional, but it also allows viewers to interpret the data more quickly and easily than looking at a table of figures. To insert a chart, follow the steps below.

Determine the Type of Chart You Need

Before deciding which type of chart is best for the data you would like to represent, it is important to understand what each chart is best used for. Bar graphs are easily readable and are best suited for comparing values. Pie charts are useful for demonstrating parts of a whole, and line graphs are better for showing trends over different time intervals. Think about what values you want to represent and what message you want to display, and then choose the type of chart that best fits your needs.

Select Chart Data and Formatting Preferences

Once you have decided on the type of chart you need, select the range of data from your spreadsheet that you would like to include. Pay attention to the formatting preferences, such as titles, color scheme, and labels, as these can impact the legible look of the chart.

To ensure your chart looks professional and correctly represents your data, Excel includes many customization options. As you create your graph, you can change the font type, background color, and other elements to make the chart aesthetically pleasing. To make your work easier, utilize the built-in formatting styles and design templates in Excel.

Analyze Overview Data

Creating an effective dashboard in Excel requires the ability to analyze data and provide an accurate overview. An overview is necessary to understand the story that the data is telling, which helps individuals and teams make decisions quickly and effectively. In order to get useful insights, you need to be able to narrow down to key sections of the data and create summary tables.

Add Filters to Narrow Down Focus of Chart

Selecting and adding filters to the chart is an integral part of creating an effective Excel dashboard. By narrowing down your focus, you can more easily identify patterns, trends, and outliers. To add filters, begin by navigating to the data set and ensure it is sorted, then select the entire set and incorporate the filters from the “Data” tab. Excel will dynamically update the chart as filters are added.

Create a Summary Table

Creating a summary table is an important step in providing an overview of the data. As a starting point, first use the table to provide an overview of relevant areas like top and bottom items in a list. Summary tables can provide valuable information about the dataset, and help individuals and teams recognize correlations, trends, and outliers. To create a summary table in Excel, use the “Table” tab and begin to filter, sort, and organize the data.

Improving Excel Dashboard Visuals

A good dashboard communicates complex information in a simple, memorable and easy to interpret format. Advanced Excel dashboards can be used to put data in a visually appealing and easily interpretable form. Therefore, it is important to utilize the design features of Excel to ensure a better user experience with the dashboard. Here are a few tips to help improve the visuals of the dashboard.

Change Color Themes

The use of colors can make a dashboard look more professional, organized and pleasant to the eye. To change the color theme of the dashboard, click on the Page Layout tab in the Ribbon. Then, click on the Colors dropdown list and select the one that fits the dashboard. Excel also offers color themes grouped by individual colors, which can help create a uniform look and make the dashboard appear neat.

Add Design Elements

Design elements can be used to make a dashboard look more inviting and eye-catching. Some design elements that can be used include lines, arrows, shapes, and other graphical objects. These elements can be used to draw attention to certain data points, or simply add to the overall aesthetic of the dashboard. To add these elements, click on the Insert tab in the Ribbon, and select the appropriate graphic from the options.

Adding Conditional Formatting

Conditional formatting is an effective tool that allows you to quickly and easily create complex visualizations within your Excel dashboard. Whether you want to highlight a range of values, create column or bar fill effects, or adjust cell borders, conditional formatting provides an efficient way to do all of this with minimal effort.

Highlight Specific Range of Values

Highlighting specific values can help call attention to particular areas of data within your dashboard. To do this, select the range of cells you want to highlight, then click the Conditional Formatting option in the Home tab. From there, select Highlight Cells Rules and pick the condition that suits your needs. For example, you can choose to highlight values that are equal to, less than, or greater than a certain value, or pick from any of the built-in formulas. You can also customize the borders, font, and fill color of the highlighted cells.

Create Column / Bar Fill Effects

In addition to highlighting individual ranges, you can apply specific fill effects such as column or bars to group or category data. To do this, first select the range of cells that you want to create the effect for. Then click the Conditional Formatting option in the Home tab and select the Data Bars option. Here you can select the fill color and choose between applying the effect on a scale of gradient or solid colors. You can also adjust the bar width and spacing to give the effect a more customized look.

Conclusion

Creating advanced Excel dashboards is a powerful way to visualize data. Through careful planning and analysis, Excel users can transform their data into insights and meaningful visuals. In conclusion, here is a short overview of the steps in creating advanced Excel dashboards and some key takeaways for Excel dashboard users.

Overview of Dashboard Creation Process

Creating a successful Excel dashboard requires careful planning and analysis. The process includes data extraction, review of the data, goal setting, data processing and visualization, and testing. With a well-planned approach, data from multiple sources can be combined and structured into a powerful dashboard.

Takeaways for Excel Dashboard Users

• Start by defining the goal for the dashboard.
• Extract and process data from multiple sources.
• Combine sources into an Excel model.
• Create data visualization to help the user interpret the data.
• Test the dashboard before displaying it to the users.
• Continuously monitor the dashboard to ensure it meets user needs and is up to date.

Advanced Excel dashboards are a great way to benefit from structured data and visualizations. For Excel dashboard users, keep the process in mind and remember the key takeaways to create a successful dashboard.