Compromises

In this section, we will transition from more or less strict rules to compromises. Often, building visualizations is a balancing act. It's not uncommon to encounter contradictory direction from books, blogs, consultants, and within organizations. One person may insist on utilizing every pixel of space while another advocates simplicity and whitespace. One counsels a guided approach, while another recommends building wide-open dashboards that allow end users to discover their own path. Avant-garde types may crave esoteric visualizations, while those of a more conservative bent prefer to stay with convention. Let's explore a few of the more common competing requests and then suggest compromises.

Making the dashboard simple and robust

Recently, a colleague showed me a complex dashboard he had just completed. Although he was pleased that he had managed to get it working well, he felt the need to apologize by saying, I know it's dense and complex, but...