Creating Dashboard Widgets

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General Special Features Advanced Reporting Last updated: June 20, 2025 Version: 1.0

Creating Dashboard Widgets

Learn how to create, customize, and organize dashboard widgets to display key metrics, visualize important data, and monitor business performance in real-time.

Overview

Dashboard widgets provide at-a-glance visualizations of your most important business metrics. With the widget creation feature, you can build a personalized dashboard that displays the exact information you need to monitor performance, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions.

Accessing Widget Creation

Opening the Widget Builder

  1. From your dashboard, click the Customize button in the top-right corner
  2. Select Add Widget from the dropdown menu
  3. The Widget Builder interface will open
  4. Alternatively, go to Business Intelligence β†’ Dashboard Customization β†’ Create Widget

Types of Widgets Available

Data Visualization Widgets

  • Charts: Line, bar, pie, and area charts for trend visualization
  • Gauges: Visual indicators of metrics against targets
  • Tables: Tabular data with sorting and filtering options
  • Maps: Geographic representation of location-based data
  • Heatmaps: Color-coded visualizations of scheduling intensity or coverage

Operational Widgets

  • Shift Coverage: Real-time view of schedule coverage and gaps
  • Attendance Metrics: Displays on-time rates and attendance issues
  • Labor Costs: Shows current vs. budgeted labor expenses
  • Staff Distribution: Visual breakdown of staff by role or location
  • Performance Metrics: Key performance indicators for teams and individuals

Alert and Status Widgets

  • Approval Queue: Shows pending requests requiring attention
  • Compliance Alerts: Highlights potential compliance issues
  • System Status: Indicates the health of integrations and services
  • Timeline: Upcoming important events and deadlines

Creating a New Widget

Basic Widget Setup

  1. In the Widget Builder, select a widget type
  2. Choose the data source for your widget:
    • Metrics: System-calculated statistics
    • Reports: Saved custom reports
    • Schedule Data: Shift and staffing information
    • Financial Data: Budget and cost tracking
  3. Give your widget a descriptive name
  4. Set the widget size (small, medium, large, or custom dimensions)
  5. Choose a default location on your dashboard

Configuring Data Sources

Depending on the widget type, you’ll need to configure:

  1. Data Selection:
    • Choose specific metrics to display
    • Select date ranges (fixed or relative)
    • Filter by locations, departments, or employees
    • Set comparison periods (e.g., previous week, same period last year)
  2. Calculation Methods:
    • Sum, average, median, count
    • Percent change, growth rate
    • Custom formulas using available metrics
  3. Visualization Options:
    • Colors and styles
    • Scale and axis settings
    • Sorting and grouping preferences
    • Display thresholds and alerts

Widget Examples and Templates

Pre-Built Templates

Save time by starting with pre-built templates:

  1. From the Widget Builder, click Templates
  2. Browse categories of pre-configured widgets
  3. Select a template that matches your needs
  4. Customize as needed to fit your specific requirements

Popular Widget Examples

  • Weekly Shift Coverage: Bar chart showing staffing levels vs. requirements
  • Attendance Dashboard: Multi-metric display of attendance statistics
  • Labor Cost Tracker: Real-time comparison of actual vs. budgeted labor costs
  • Staff Performance: Key metrics on staff productivity and ratings
  • Location Comparison: Side-by-side metrics for different locations

Advanced Widget Features

Conditional Formatting

Make important data stand out:

  1. Select your widget in the builder
  2. Click Conditional Formatting
  3. Set rules for when data should trigger visual changes:
    • Color changes based on thresholds
    • Icons or indicators for exceptional values
    • Highlight cells or sections that need attention

Interactive Elements

Add user interaction to your widgets:

  1. Enable the Interactive option
  2. Configure click or hover actions:
    • Drill down into detailed data
    • Link to related reports or dashboards
    • Show additional context or information

Scheduled Refresh

Keep your widgets up-to-date:

  1. Select your widget
  2. Click Refresh Settings
  3. Choose how often the widget should update:
    • Real-time (for critical metrics)
    • Hourly, daily, or custom intervals
    • Manual refresh only

Organizing Your Dashboard

Widget Placement

Arrange widgets for optimal viewing:

  1. From your dashboard, click Customize β†’ Rearrange Widgets
  2. Drag and drop widgets to your preferred locations
  3. Resize widgets by dragging their corners
  4. Group related widgets together

Creating Multiple Dashboards

For different purposes or roles:

  1. Go to Business Intelligence β†’ Dashboards
  2. Click Create Dashboard
  3. Name your dashboard and set its purpose
  4. Add and configure widgets specific to this dashboard
  5. Set access permissions for who can view this dashboard

Sharing and Permissions

Sharing Widgets

Share your creations with others:

  1. Select the widget on your dashboard
  2. Click the Share icon
  3. Choose who to share with:
    • Individual users
    • Roles (all managers, all admins)
    • Everyone in your organization
  4. Set permission level (view only or edit)

Exporting Widget Data

Get data out of widgets:

  1. Click the menu icon in the widget’s corner
  2. Select Export
  3. Choose your format:
    • Excel/CSV for raw data
    • PDF for visual reports
    • Image for presentations

Best Practices

For effective dashboard widgets:

  1. Focus on actionable metrics - Create widgets that drive decisions
  2. Keep it simple - Don’t overcrowd widgets with too much information
  3. Group related metrics - Create logical sections in your dashboard
  4. Use consistent formatting - Maintain visual harmony across widgets
  5. Review regularly - Update widgets as business priorities change
  6. Consider your audience - Build specific dashboards for different user roles

Related Resources

This article should be updated when:

  1. New widget types are added
  2. The widget builder interface changes
  3. Data source options are modified or expanded
  4. Sharing and permission options change
  5. New visualization features are introduced
Article ID: dashboard_widgets
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