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. Virtually every organization wants to "do more with data", better manage figures, and be able to adjust quickly when necessary. Yet, many dashboards remain just a collection of separate graphs and numbers. They may provide insight, but not direction. They show numbers but do not tell what is truly going on.

At VDS, we often see this: 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 focus on. In this blog, we explain how to turn an unstructured KPI list into a valuable steering tool that works in daily practice.

Bring structure to your KPIs

A common pitfall is that all available KPIs are placed on one dashboard, without hierarchy. As a result, dashboards may contain total revenue next to inventory shortages, and customer satisfaction 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 about 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 zoom in deeper if they wish. This encourages ownership and activates the organization to act based on data.

A well-structured KPI framework:

Keeps the overview centralized.
Avoids unnecessary details at the main level.
Offers depth when needed.

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

A well-structured KPI framework:

Keeps the overview centralized.
Avoids unnecessary details at the main level.
Offers depth when needed.

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

Choose consciously: fewer KPIs, more focus

Another problem we often encounter is excess. If you display fifteen to twenty KPIs at once, there is a good chance that no one will remember what it’s really about. Attention gets fragmented, and the likelihood of taking action decreases.

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

Net revenue
Gross margin
Order lead time
Customer satisfaction (NPS or CSAT)
Inventory value or occupancy rate

By positioning these as main KPIs, you provide clear direction. All other information can be clustered below as sub-KPIs 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 lead time
Customer satisfaction (NPS or CSAT)
Inventory value or occupancy rate

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 when 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% primarily 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 quotes > 25%
A maximum return ratio < 5%
A stock turnover > 4 times per year

In some cases, it pays off to split KPIs. A scoring percentage for quotes says something very different for existing customers than for new business. By separating these into two KPIs, you can analyze and steer much more effectively.

Including targets also offers another advantage: you can directly link performance to responsibilities. Department managers know what they are being evaluated 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 "unfair," and you increase the sense of ownership.

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 quotes > 25%
A maximum return ratio < 5%
A stock turnover > 4 times per year

Including targets also offers another advantage: you can directly link performance to responsibilities. Department managers know what they are being evaluated 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 "unfair," and you increase the sense of ownership.

Build the dashboard iteratively and involve the users

When setting up dashboards, organizations prefer to do everything right at once. Every KPI, every system, every team all integrated at the same time. In practice, this often proves unfeasible. Data quality is variable, priorities shift, and the overview is lost.

We therefore advise to start small and build smartly:

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

This approach has several advantages:

You show results quickly.
Users can quickly 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 initiative. The dashboard is merely the tool, 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 manage better. And give them influence over how information is presented. This way, the dashboard becomes not something from "above," but something of their own.

We therefore advise to start small and build smartly:

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

This approach has several advantages:

You show results quickly.
Users can quickly 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 initiative. The dashboard is merely the tool, 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. But this only works if the dashboard is well-structured: with clear structure, conscious choices, relevant goals, and engaged users.

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