What to put on a business dashboard: the measures that matter, by type of business

Most dashboard projects go wrong before any chart is drawn, at the point where someone has to decide what to show. Too many measures and nobody looks. The wrong ones and the dashboard is ignored. This guide gives you a method for choosing, example measures for different kinds of business and a way to define each one so people trust it. For the wider picture, read the complete guide to business dashboards.

Start with decisions

For every candidate measure, ask: what would I do differently if this number moved?

• "Quotes sent but not yet answered" can trigger follow-up calls. Keep it.
• "Total website visits" rarely changes a decision on its own. Probably leave it off the main screen.
• "Invoices more than 30 days overdue" triggers chasing. Keep it.

This one question removes most of the clutter. If you can't name the action, it is trivia, however easy it is to chart.

Leading and lagging measures

Kind	What it tells you	Examples
Leading	What is about to happen, so you can act	Enquiries received, quotes sent, bookings made, stock running low, jobs scheduled
Lagging	What has already happened	Revenue, profit, invoices paid, jobs completed

A dashboard of only lagging measures tells you how last month went. Adding a few leading ones tells you how next month is shaping up, which is when you can still change it.

How many measures

Five to nine. A dashboard that needs scrolling or a guide to read has too many. If you genuinely need more, build a second view for a different job or role, not a longer first screen.

Example measures by type of business

These are starting points to adapt, not a standard list.

Trades and job-based businesses

Measure	Why it matters	Usually comes from
Quotes sent and still waiting	Follow-up opportunities	Quoting or CRM system
Jobs booked this week and next	Capacity and cash flow	Job or diary system
Jobs by status (booked, in progress, finished, invoiced)	Where work is stuck	Job system
Invoices overdue	Cash chasing	Accounting software
Repeat customers	Health of your reputation	CRM or accounting

Professional services

Measure	Why it matters	Usually comes from
Enquiries to proposals to wins	Where the pipeline leaks	CRM
Work done but not yet billed	Cash you've earned but not invoiced	Time or job records and accounting
Invoices outstanding by age	Cash chasing	Accounting software
Capacity for the next few weeks	Whether you can take new work	Diary or resource plan

Retail and ecommerce

Measure	Why it matters	Usually comes from
Orders and order value	Trading health	Shop platform
Average order value	Pricing and bundling	Shop platform
Stock running low	Avoid lost sales	Stock system
Returns	Product or description problems	Shop platform
Visitors turning into buyers	Website effectiveness	Analytics and shop platform

Hospitality and leisure

Measure	Why it matters	Usually comes from
Bookings against capacity	Fill rate	Booking system
No-shows and late cancellations	Lost revenue	Booking system
Busiest and quietest periods	Staffing and promotions	Booking or till system
Repeat guests	Loyalty	Booking or CRM

Manufacturing and engineering

Measure	Why it matters	Usually comes from
Orders in progress	Workload	Order or production system
On-time delivery	Customer satisfaction	Order system
Jobs waiting on materials or information	Bottlenecks	Production system
Materials running short	Avoid stoppages	Stock system

Define each measure properly

The most common reason a dashboard is distrusted is that two people calculate the same number differently. For every measure write down:

Item	Example for "overdue invoices"
How it is calculated	Total value of invoices past their due date and unpaid, excluding credit notes
Where it comes from	The accounting software, refreshed every night
Who owns it	The person responsible for credit control
What good looks like	Under an agreed share of monthly invoicing, with a flag above that

Settle awkward definitions up front: what counts as a "customer", when a job is "complete", whether figures include VAT and which date a sale belongs to. Five minutes of agreement here saves months of arguments later.

Show change, not just numbers

A number on its own says little. Show it against something: last week, last month, the same period last year or a target. Use colour only to mark exceptions, so that when something turns red, people notice.

What the evidence says

What was found	Who found it	Read it with care
Of UK businesses that handle digital data, 72% analyse it	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), Business data use and productivity study wave 2, updated January 2026	3,796 businesses, fieldwork December 2024 to February 2025. Self-reported
Among businesses that analyse data, 47% reported more efficient processes or cost savings, against 14% of those that do not	DSIT, same study	An association, not proof. The report doesn't seek to establish cause
Serious errors were found in 91% of 55 operational spreadsheets across five field audits (1995 to 2000)	Raymond Panko, summary of spreadsheet audits	Counts errors "serious in the context of the spreadsheet's use". Thresholds varied, and the audits are older

Measures are only as good as the data behind them. A hand-maintained spreadsheet behind a dashboard undermines it, which is why the data feed matters as much as the chart. See how to connect your business data to a dashboard.

A quick test for your list

Read your list aloud and check:

1. Can I name an action for each measure?
2. Are there between five and nine?
3. Is there at least one leading measure?
4. Does every measure have a definition and an owner?
5. Would the person who does the work recognise these as their numbers?

If a measure fails, cut it. You can always add it later, and you'll be surprised how rarely you do.

Where Logic NI fits

We help you choose a small set of measures, define each one, connect the real data and build a dashboard your team can trust. See the business dashboard service and business systems, or talk to us about what yours would show.