Why dashboards are better than spreadsheets – In the security industry, spreadsheets can be a marvelous data-tracking tool. And by now, you’ve likely mastered the art of Excel. As hard as change can be, though, there comes a time when your security operations will outgrow your formulas.
That’s where SVPRO powered by SecureVizual dashboards combined with our automated reporting is taking actionable data to the next level.
Why Dashboards Are Better Than Spreadsheets
#1 Your Metrics are Growing and your KPIs are Increasingly Sophisticated
If you started out with a few KPIs that a spreadsheet could easily track, you’re not alone. However, as your security systems evolve to incorporate new technologies and challenges, it’s likely that your key performance indicators (KPIs) have also expanded.
If you’re spending too much time scrolling through Excel, attempting to record multiple metrics, and track dozens of KPIs, it’s time to invest in a visual dashboard — such as SecureVizual’s security resource optimization dashboard. SecureVizual gathers real-time data from any SQL database connected to your security operations, analyzes it, finds relationships, and creates connections between systems.
These actionable connections are displayed in a real-time dynamic dashboard. Gathering intelligence, seeing previously hidden connections, making decisions, devising new policies, and developing new procedures has never been easier.
#2 You’re Missing the Forest for the Trees
If you’re frequently taken by surprise or you’re constantly reacting to unforeseen security events, your spreadsheet may be to blame.
It’s easy to miss a key data point when it’s buried in a list of a thousand different metrics. You might even be missing key measurements altogether. As physical security becomes more complex and interconnected, the odds of missing an important metric increase.
If you feel like you’re always a half-step behind, it’s time for a visual dashboard.
#3 Your Security Status Meetings are Long, Grueling, and Unproductive
If your weekly status reports are disorganized and you feel as though you’re always scrambling to demonstrate your team’s performance, creating formulas on the fly, or failing to “drill down” deep enough, it’s a good indication that your spreadsheet-based reporting methods aren’t working.
With SecureVizual, users enjoy intuitive reporting functions that pull data from multiple sources. Reports can be easily modified to match specific queries, which means that decision-makers can make smart, data-driven, cost-effective decisions more quickly than ever before.
Before long, your weekly meetings will focus less on the week that’s passed, and more on your proactive goals for the weeks to come.
#4 Your Team is One-for-All but Not All-for-One
If individual team members are responsible for specific and myopic portions of your security plan, they’re working in silos. Spreadsheets promote silos by isolating KPIs from each other, hiding the connections between the datasets you collect across your security environment. And in the security world, the big picture is just as important as the details.
Visual dashboards can help team members see how their actions impact one another. This makes it a lot easier to achieve common goals. Additionally, if your employees can’t see how their work impacts the performance of the team, they’ll be less likely to be motivated to exceed expectations.
#5 You Know You’re Working Hard but No One Else Does
If your plan is working but nobody quite understands why, and you’re constantly trying to demonstrate your success, your spreadsheet could be at fault. Dashboards combine all your data into one truthful source.
In fact, digital dashboards can be scheduled to automatically create reports from all of your SQL systems in real-time. The more often your data is updated and refreshed, the more accurate your reports will be. This saves time, reduces the possibility of human error, and takes the guesswork out of performance evaluations.
#6 You’re Tired of Squinting at Columns of Numbers
Why Dashboards Are Better Than Spreadsheets – Let’s face it, we’re not getting any younger and we’re rarely tethered to a computer. Responsive dashboards, unlike spreadsheets, look great on your phone and they’re easy to manipulate.
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To learn more about why dashboards are better than spreadsheets contact the SVPRO team.