In previous articles of the BSI Feature Focus Dashboard series, it was explained that each user has the ability to configure a unique and persistent Dashboard homepage which is comprised of a selection of widgets from the Dashboard’s Widget Library. One of the goals of the Dashboard is to provide users with an immediate overview of their work and their data. We also explored how the ‘Assigned To’ widgets can help users track the work assigned to them. In this article we will take a look at how the ‘Reporting’ widgets can give users an intuitive and comprehensive summary of their data at a single glance.
The Reporting widgets are able to present users with two distinct kinds of data, presented in straightforward and interactive tables and charts. With Listing Report widgets, users can choose to display a table of data that meets user-specified search criteria. Any listing report that has been created and saved in the system can be selected and added to the dashboard from this widget. The table can be modified to highlight particular fields, hide others, and even sort the data view. Furthermore, as the needs of the user change over time, the report criteria can be edited and refreshed right from the Dashboard widget.
Similar to the Listing Report widgets, Chart widgets can be generated from any frequency report that already exists in the system. Also like the Listing Reports, the search criteria defining what data is represented can be edited and saved right from the Chart Report. However, the Chart Reports differs in the way the data is displayed. Because these reports represent frequency information, the data can be added to the Dashboard as an interactive pie chart or bar graph. These brightly colored displays are interactive, allowing the user to click on segments of the chart to produce more detailed information associated with the data represented there. Users can select the display fields for these multi-dimensional data sets, and toggle between views as the widget remains active on the Dashboard. Users can even toggle between a bar graph and pie chart for a single set of data. Additional features allow users to immediately ascertain the specific search criteria associated with the report, and the date and time that data was last refreshed. Users can also refresh the report data at their leisure.
Within any of the Reporting widgets, any Sample ID or unique BSI ID that is displayed is linked to a specimen view pop-up dialog, presenting the user with additional information about those samples and specimens at the click of a button. Likewise, a Batch ID will link to the associated batch, allowing the user to open that batch and perform work instantly.
We can see that while the Dashboard’s Reporting widgets provide users with a quick look at their data, they can do much more than that too. The interactive nature of these reports allows users to not only alter report criteria on the spot, but also to adjust the report views in such a way that the most important information is the information that’s most visible. With the added functionality of link-outs to specimens and batches, it is clear to see that the Reporting widgets are powerful user tools that can facilitate not only a visual display of data, but also interaction with that data.