From KPIs to concrete steering

This is how you build a dashboard that truly contributes to better decisions.

Nov 7, 2025

KPI dashboards are popular. Almost every organization wants to "do more with data", better manage numbers, and be able to adjust faster where necessary. Yet, many dashboards remain a collection of separate graphs and numbers. They may provide insight, but not direction. They show numbers, but do not explain what is really going on.

At VDS, we often see it: an extensive KPI list as a starting point, but without structure, without priority, and without connection to practice. The result? Users do not know what to pay attention to. In this blog, we explain how to turn an unstructured KPI list into a valuable management tool that actually works in daily practice.

Bring structure to your KPIs

A common pitfall is putting all available KPIs on one dashboard, without hierarchy. This results in dashboards where total revenue sits alongside inventory shortages, and customer satisfaction sits next to order lead time. The consequence is that users cannot distinguish between strategically relevant information and operational details.

The solution? Think in layers. Start with a number of main KPIs at a strategic level, such as revenue growth, margin development, or customer satisfaction, and allow users to click through to underlying sub-KPIs. Think of revenue per product group, margin per customer segment, or customer satisfaction per service channel.

This keeps the dashboard clear and interactive. Users immediately see the most important trends but can also delve deeper if they wish. This encourages ownership and activates the organization to act based on data.

A well-structured KPI framework:

Keeps the overview central.
Avoids unnecessary details at the main level.
Provides depth when it is needed.

In short: the power of structure lies in simplicity at the front, and flexibility behind it.

A well-structured KPI framework:

Keeps the overview central.
Avoids unnecessary details at the main level.
Provides depth when it is needed.

In short: the power of structure lies in simplicity at the front, and flexibility behind it.

Choose consciously: fewer KPIs, more focus

Another problem we often encounter is excess. If you display fifteen to twenty KPIs at once, it's likely that no one knows what it's really about anymore. Attention gets diluted, and the chance for action decreases.

That's why it's important to bring focus. Which five to six KPIs are so important that they need to be followed daily? These are usually the indicators that are most connected to the strategic goals of the organization. Think of:

Net revenue
Gross margin
Order throughput time
Customer satisfaction (NPS or CSAT)
Inventory value

By positioning these as main KPIs, you provide clear direction. All other information can be clustered below as sub-KPI or as part of a departmental dashboard. This way, you maintain focus without losing information.

Note: ideally, you make this selection together with management and key personnel from operations. This ensures that the dashboard is not only functional but also supported.

Net revenue
Gross margin
Order throughput time
Customer satisfaction (NPS or CSAT)
Inventory value

Note: ideally, you make this selection together with management and key personnel from operations. This ensures that the dashboard is not only functional but also supported.

Provide KPI meanings with targets and segmentation

A KPI only really means something if you know what 'good' is. Yet, dashboards are often delivered without reference values or goals. The result: a conversion of 12% or an occupancy rate of 78% mostly raises questions. Is that good? Bad? Normal?

By including a target for each KPI, you make the numbers interpretable. A target doesn't have to be set in stone; an indicative range or target value is often sufficient. Think of:

A scoring percentage for offers > 25%
A constant occupancy rate > 75%

In some cases, it pays off to split KPIs. A scoring percentage for offers means something very different for existing customers than for new ones. By separating these into two KPIs, you can analyze and guide much more specifically.

Including targets offers another advantage: you can directly link performance to responsibilities. Department managers know what they are being assessed on, and teams receive clear guidance.

Our advice: always establish targets in consultation with the responsible teams. This way, you prevent the numbers from being perceived as

By including a target for each KPI, you make the numbers interpretable. A target doesn't have to be set in stone; an indicative range or target value is often sufficient. Think of:

A scoring percentage for offers > 25%
A constant occupancy rate > 75%

Including targets offers another advantage: you can directly link performance to responsibilities. Department managers know what they are being assessed on, and teams receive clear guidance.

Our advice: always establish targets in consultation with the responsible teams. This way, you prevent the numbers from being perceived as

Build the dashboard iteratively and involve the users

When setting up dashboards, organizations prefer to get everything right at once. Every KPI, every system, every team all integrated at the same time. In practice, this often proves not to be feasible. The quality of the data is variable, priorities shift, and the overview is lost.

We therefore advise to start small and build wisely:

Choose 2 to 3 KPIs of which you are sure that the data is available and reliable.
Build a first working dashboard around this.
Let users work with this quickly so that the process comes to life.
Then expand with more KPIs, departments, and levels of detail.

This approach has several advantages:

You quickly show results.
Users can immediately get used to working with dashboards.
You build support and data quality step by step.

A successful KPI approach is not an IT project, but a change approach. The dashboard is merely the means; behavior and usage determine success.

Therefore, involving users is crucial. Let departments think about which KPIs are relevant to them. Ask what they need to better manage. And give them influence over how information is displayed. This way, the dashboard becomes not something from "above", but something of their own.

We therefore advise to start small and build wisely:

Choose 2 to 3 KPIs of which you are sure that the data is available and reliable.
Build a first working dashboard around this.
Let users work with this quickly so that the process comes to life.
Then expand with more KPIs, departments, and levels of detail.

This approach has several advantages:

You quickly show results.
Users can immediately get used to working with dashboards.
You build support and data quality step by step.

A successful KPI approach is not an IT project, but a change approach. The dashboard is merely the means; behavior and usage determine success.

Finally: from measuring to improving

A KPI dashboard is not a report. It is a management tool that helps people make decisions faster, sharper, and more effectively. However, this only works if the dashboard is well-structured: with a clear structure, conscious choices, relevant goals, and engaged users.

At VDS, we believe that data only gains value when people actively use it. That is why we not only help organizations with technology but especially with building dashboards that are supported and make an impact.