Small Business Executive Dashboards

Dashboards offer at-a-glance information about your company's performance
By Chris Caggiano When you peer at your car's dashboard, you can quickly assess how the vehicle is functioning and receive alerts when something's gone awry. Small business dashboards offer something similar to business owners: a consolidated view of key information about the business, including alerts when trouble looms.

Dashboards are essentially one-screen, customizable computer snapshots comprising charts and tables of your company's key indicators: sales reports (daily, monthly, year-to-date), cash on hand, profitability, back orders, inventory levels, payroll, accounts receivable and payable, etc. Costs range from about $150 to $1,500 for an off-the-shelf program, but there are also Web-based subscription models that start at about $150 a month.

If you're using Peachtree or Quickbooks, you already have dashboard capabilities (Peachtree doesn't use the word "dashboard," but the program's home screen serves that function.) Microsoft Small Business Accounting also has dashboard functionality that includes:

1. Automatic company-wide updates when the program receives new data
2. Customizable views for different employees
3. Warning lights when indicators reach unacceptable levels

Test drive off-the-self software

If you don't already have the software, you can download free trial versions and check out their respective dashboard features.
Try:  Download free trial versions of Peachtree, Quickbooks and Microsoft Small Business Accounting.

Consider using Web-hosted software

Dashboard views are also available in online versions, such as the service from Quickbooks, and from Web-only packages such as NetSuite. The benefits of hosted accounting software include easy access from any Internet connection and automatic software upgrades.
Try:  Check out a screen shot of the NetSuite and Quickbooks dashboards. You can also download a trial version of NetSuite and a trial version of Quickbooks.

Determine what you need to track

Once the software is installed, you'll need to figure out which business indicators you want to track. This may not be as obvious as it sounds. The most important number or ratio for your business may not be the one you think it is, and that all-important number may change over time.
Try:  To start thinking about what business information your dashboard should include, see these tips on Inc.com. The site also includes a worksheet to help you figure out what numbers are most important for your business. (Free registration required.)

• Check to see if your current accounting software has dashboard capability.
• Plan on two to three months to get up and running, both in terms of implementing the software and inputting the data.
• Inquire whether the software you're considering has different views for different people: CEO, salespeople, bookkeepers, accountants, etc.
• Your dashboard may need to change as your business changes. Make sure your dashboard can grow with you and your business.