How do I avoid "Chart Junk" and keep my executive dashboards clean and actionable?

All answers to this question.

The phrase you’re looking for is "Data-to-Ink Ratio," a concept popularized by Edward Tufte. The goal is to maximize the ink used for actual data while minimizing the ink used for non-information-carrying elements like grid lines, borders, and especially 3D effects. 3D charts actually distort the data and make it harder to compare values. Focus on a "Top-Down" approach: put the most important KPI in the top left, use clear titles that state the conclusion, and only use colors to highlight the most important data points rather than making every bar a different color.

   Answered 2024-01-22 by Cynthia Adams

When you talk about cutting filters, don't you worry that removing them might lead to executives asking more follow-up questions because they can't "slice" the data themselves during the meeting?

   Answered 2024-01-24 by Jason Murphy

• Jason, the trick is to provide "guided analytics." Instead of 20 filters, provide 3 high-level ones. If they need a deeper dive, create a separate "drill-through" page. An executive dashboard should tell them what happened in 5 seconds; if they want to know exactly why, that's where a detailed report or a live drill-down comes in. This keeps the initial view clean and prevents "analysis paralysis."

     Commented 2024-01-26 by Donald Clark

Less is always more. If a chart doesn't directly answer a business question that was asked, it doesn't belong on the main dashboard. It's as simple as that.

   Answered 2024-01-27 by Kimberly Allen

• Kimberly is right. We often feel the need to show how much work we did by including everything, but the most valuable thing we can give an exec is their time back.

     Commented 2024-01-28 by Cynthia Adams