by PT 8.62
Randall Groncki
After we have created Insights visualizations, the next step is to create a dashboard using those visualizations.
An Insights Dashboard is a container for one or more Visualizations.
When a filter is applied to a visualization on a dashboard, that filter is applied to all visualizations on that dashboard. For example, if a user clicks on a pie slice to drill down on that item, every visualization on that dashboard is also filtered on that pie slice value.
The dashboard seamlessly integrating and coordinating all visualizations is the true analytical power of Insights Dashboards.
A Preview
This blog will create two Insights Dashboards
A small, one visualization dashboard to display on a Navigation tile
And a larger, more complex main dashboard that displays multiple visualizations.
PeopleSoft uses Insights Dashboards, not Visualizations
Dashboards are the only Insights objects that PeopleSoft can reference. PeopleSoft cannot directly reference any visualizations.
PeopleSoft Uses Insights Dashboards
Those Insights Dashboards contain Visualizations
PeopleSoft has no idea about the Visualizations on the dashboard, only the dashboard.
A simple Analogy
An Insights Dashboards is like a big, green Lego baseplate. By itself, it’s not very interesting.
The Lego Bricks are visualizations. They contain all the fun. But they can’t do much by themselves.
Building something with those bricks on the baseplate brings structure and organization to the bricks. You can arrange the bricks however you want. Any way you move the baseplate, those bricks move with the baseplate.
Turn the baseplate around, the bricks turn with it.
PeopleTools can only reference an Insights Dashboard (baseplate). Whatever visualization you put on that Dashboard comes with it to your PeopleSoft page.
Create a Tile Dashboard
Our first dashboard is a one visualization dashboard that will be used on a Navigation Tile on a Fluid Home Page. This tile will link to our bigger dashboard.
Navigate to the Insights Homepage
Navigation: Home > Reporting Tools > Insights.
Then from the Insights Homepage: Dashboards
Click the Create Dashboard Button
Click the “Add an Existing” or new object link.
Start typing our visualization name and find our simple Metric that counts all documents
Select it, and we see the visualization appear on the dashboard behind the dialog box
Close the “Add Panels” dialog box.
This is our first dashboard. It contains one Visualization, a metric. This is the minimum we need for an Insights dashboard.
Using the “size” control in the bottom, right corner of the metric, resize the box smaller.
Click the “Configuration” control in the top, right corner of the metric and choose “Edit Panel Title”.
Uncheck the “Show Panel Title” box. We don’t need a title for this Visualization.
Click “Save” on the Customization Panel.
Save the Dashboard by clicking the “Save” link at the top, right of the Dashboard.
Name the dashboard something descriptive and meaningful. I generally name the dashboard after the Primary Index Pattern and its purpose.
Click Save
We have completed our first Insights Dashboard.
Create a more complex Dashboard
Dashboards rarely have only one visualization. Our next Dashboard will have four visualizations to demonstrate arranging, sizing and titles.
Click the Dashboards link to get back to the Dashboards home page, then click the “Create Dashboard” button.
Click the “Add an Existing” or new object link.
Start typing our visualization name and find our simple Metric that counts all documents
Click on each of our visualizations one at a time. They are added to the dashboard behind the dialog box.
Close the dialog box
We see all four visualizations displayed on the dashboard in the order we selected them.
Save the Dashboard with a descriptive name.
Click the Dashboard Edit button in the upper left corner to put the dashboard into “Edit” mode.
Use the “Size” control in the bottom right corner of any visualization to adjust the size of the metric.
Use the Visualizations Title bar to drag and drop the Metric to the desired location. The other visualizations will move out of the way.
Click the “Configuration” control in the top, right corner of the metric and choose “Edit Panel Title”. Turn the Titles on or off for each visualization. The default title is the Visualization object name. Type something a little more user friendly.
Save the dashboard changes.
We’ve completed our main dashboard.
Summary
Creating the dashboards themselves is simple:
- Add the visualizations to a dashboard
- Drag and drop them where you want them
- Resize them
- Edit or turn off the title.
The harder task is arranging the dashboard visualizations in the best way to convey the story the data is trying to tell.
That will take time and practice.
Next
In our next episode, we’ll return to PeopleSoft to import and configure these dashboards and make them available to the users.
