Executive Dashboard

Metadata

Name: executive-dashboard
Description: KPI framework for executive performance monitoring
Triggers: dashboard, KPI, performance metrics, executive reporting, scorecard

Instructions

You are designing an executive dashboard for $ARGUMENTS.

Create a KPI framework that provides visibility into critical business drivers.

Framework

Dashboard Design Principles

Strategic Alignment - KPIs tied to strategic objectives
Leading + Lagging - Mix of predictive and outcome measures
Actionable - Each KPI has an owner who can act
Limited - 5-10 KPIs maximum per view
Drill-down - Can explore details when needed
Real-time or Near Real-time - Timely enough to act

KPI Categories

| Category | Purpose | Examples | |----------|---------|----------| | Financial | Profitability & health | Revenue, margin, cash flow | | Customer | Market position | NPS, retention, share | | Operational | Efficiency & quality | Cycle time, quality, utilization | | People | Human capital | Engagement, turnover, productivity | | Growth | Future performance | Pipeline, innovation, launches |

Leading vs. Lagging Indicators

| Type | Definition | Example | |------|------------|---------| | Leading | Predicts future performance | Pipeline, bookings, web traffic | | Lagging | Measures past performance | Revenue, profit, market share | | Coincident | Current state indicator | Backlog, inventory, headcount |

Traffic Light System

🟢 Green = On track (within tolerance)
🟡 Yellow = At risk (outside tolerance, needs attention)
🔴 Red = Off track (significant deviation, action required)

Output Format

## Executive Dashboard: [Business/Function]

### Dashboard Purpose

**Business Unit/Function:** [Name]
**Dashboard Owner:** [Executive]
**Update Frequency:** [Daily/Weekly/Monthly]
**Primary Audience:** [Who uses this]
**Key Decisions Supported:** [What decisions does this inform]

---

### Dashboard Overview

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ EXECUTIVE DASHBOARD │ │ [Business Unit] │ │ As of: [Date] │ ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ │ │ REVENUE MARGIN CUSTOMER OPERATIONS │ │ $50.2M 22.5% NPS: 72 98.2% SLA │ │ 🟢 +8% YoY 🟡 -1pt YoY 🟢 +5pts 🟢 +0.5pt │ │ │ ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ │ │ CRITICAL METRICS │ │ ┌──────────────┬──────────────┬──────────────┬──────────────┐ │ │ │ ARR: $45M │ Churn: 5.2% │ CAC: $2.1K │ LTV: $15K │ │ │ │ 🟢 +12% │ 🟡 +0.5pt │ 🟢 -10% │ 🟢 +20% │ │ │ └──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────┘ │ │ │ │ 🟢 6 Green │ 🟡 3 Yellow │ 🔴 1 Red │ │ │ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘


---

### KPI Definitions

#### Financial KPIs

| KPI | Definition | Target | Current | Status | Trend |
|-----|------------|--------|---------|--------|-------|
| **Revenue** | Total revenue (monthly) | $50M | $50.2M | 🟢 | ↑ |
| **Gross Margin** | (Revenue - COGS) / Revenue | 65% | 63% | 🟡 | → |
| **Operating Margin** | Operating income / Revenue | 25% | 22.5% | 🟡 | ↓ |
| **Free Cash Flow** | Cash from operations - CapEx | $10M | $12M | 🟢 | ↑ |
| **ARR** | Annual recurring revenue | $40M | $45M | 🟢 | ↑ |

#### Customer KPIs

| KPI | Definition | Target | Current | Status | Trend |
|-----|------------|--------|---------|--------|-------|
| **NPS** | Net Promoter Score | 70 | 72 | 🟢 | ↑ |
| **Customer Retention** | % retained customers | 95% | 94.8% | 🟡 | → |
| **Churn Rate** | % customers lost (annual) | <5% | 5.2% | 🟡 | ↑ |
| **Market Share** | % of market | 25% | 23% | 🟡 | → |
| **CAC** | Customer acquisition cost | <$2.5K | $2.1K | 🟢 | ↓ |

#### Operational KPIs

| KPI | Definition | Target | Current | Status | Trend |
|-----|------------|--------|---------|--------|-------|
| **SLA Achievement** | % of SLAs met | 99% | 98.2% | 🟢 | ↑ |
| **Cycle Time** | Avg. time to complete | <5 days | 4.8 days | 🟢 | ↓ |
| **Quality Score** | Defect-free rate | 99.5% | 99.1% | 🟡 | → |
| **Utilization** | Resource utilization | 85% | 82% | 🟡 | ↓ |

#### People KPIs

| KPI | Definition | Target | Current | Status | Trend |
|-----|------------|--------|---------|--------|-------|
| **Engagement Score** | Employee engagement | 80 | 78 | 🟡 | → |
| **Voluntary Turnover** | % leaving voluntarily | <10% | 8.5% | 🟢 | ↓ |
| **Productivity** | Revenue per employee | $300K | $315K | 🟢 | ↑ |

#### Growth KPIs

| KPI | Definition | Target | Current | Status | Trend |
|-----|------------|--------|---------|--------|-------|
| **Pipeline Value** | Weighted pipeline | $100M | $85M | 🔴 | ↓ |
| **Win Rate** | % of deals won | 35% | 38% | 🟢 | ↑ |
| **New Product Revenue** | % from products <2yr old | 20% | 18% | 🟡 | → |

---

### Trend Visualization

**Revenue (12-month rolling)**

$60M ┤ │ ╭───● $55M ┤ ╭────────╯ │ ╭──────╯ $50M ┤ ╭─────────╯ │ ╭───────╯ $45M ┤──────╯ │ $40M ┤ └───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬─── J F M A M J J A S O N D


**NPS Trend**

80 ┤ ╭───────● │ ╭───────╯ 75 ┤ ╭───────╯ │────╯ 70 ┤ │ 65 ┤ └───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬───┬─── J F M A M J J A S O N D


---

### Alerts & Exceptions

| Alert | Metric | Condition | Current | Action Required |
|-------|--------|-----------|---------|-----------------|
| 🔴 **CRITICAL** | Pipeline | <$90M | $85M | Sales push needed |
| 🟡 **WARNING** | Gross Margin | <64% | 63% | Cost review |
| 🟡 **WARNING** | Churn | >5% | 5.2% | Retention campaign |

---

### KPI Drill-Down

#### 🔴 Pipeline Detail

**By Stage:**
| Stage | Value | # Deals | Avg Size | Conversion |
|-------|-------|---------|----------|------------|
| Qualification | $20M | 40 | $500K | 20% |
| Discovery | $25M | 25 | $1M | 35% |
| Proposal | $25M | 15 | $1.7M | 50% |
| Negotiation | $15M | 8 | $1.9M | 70% |

**By Region:**
| Region | Pipeline | Target | Gap |
|--------|----------|--------|-----|
| North America | $40M | $50M | -$10M |
| EMEA | $25M | $25M | ✅ |
| APAC | $20M | $25M | -$5M |

**Root Cause:** [Analysis of why pipeline is low]

**Action Items:**
1. [Action 1] - Owner: [Name] - Due: [Date]
2. [Action 2] - Owner: [Name] - Due: [Date]

---

### Period Comparison

| Metric | This Period | Last Period | YoY Change | Target |
|--------|-------------|-------------|------------|--------|
| Revenue | $50.2M | $48.5M | +8% ✅ | $50M |
| Margin | 22.5% | 23.1% | -1pt ⚠️ | 25% |
| NPS | 72 | 70 | +5pts ✅ | 70 |
| Pipeline | $85M | $95M | -15% ⚠️ | $100M |
| Headcount | 159 | 155 | +10% ✅ | 165 |

---

### Management Actions

**Decisions Required:**
1. **Pipeline shortfall** - Approve sales incentive program
2. **Margin pressure** - Authorize cost reduction initiative
3. **Hiring plan** - Confirm Q1 headcount targets

**Recent Actions Taken:**
| Action | Date | Owner | Status |
|--------|------|-------|--------|
| Price increase | Jan 15 | CFO | ✅ Complete |
| Sales training | Jan 20 | CRO | 🔄 In progress |
| Cost audit | Jan 25 | COO | 🔄 In progress |

---

### Dashboard Governance

**Update Schedule:**
- Data refresh: Daily at 6:00 AM
- Dashboard update: Daily by 8:00 AM
- Review meeting: Weekly Monday 9:00 AM

**Data Sources:**
- Financial: [ERP System]
- Customer: [CRM System]
- Operational: [Operations Dashboard]
- People: [HRIS System]

**Accountability:**
- Dashboard Owner: [Name]
- Data Steward: [Name]
- Review Forum: [Meeting]

**Escalation Path:**
- 🟡 Yellow > 2 weeks → Function head
- 🔴 Red > 1 week → Executive team

Tips

Less is more - only critical KPIs
Each KPI should have an owner
Mix leading and lagging indicators
Make it visual - trends, not just numbers
Exception-based reporting - focus on what's off track
Can you act on this? If not, why track it?
Review and refresh KPIs quarterly
The dashboard should tell a story

References

Kaplan, Robert & Norton, David. The Balanced Scorecard. 1996.
Few, Stephen. Information Dashboard Design. 2006.
Parmenter, David. Key Performance Indicators. 2015.