Lately I've been researching the data visualization space and how dashboards really benefit organizations. The general value of dashboards may seem obvious to some, but actually defining the proper metrics and aligning those to an organization's overall strategic goals may not be as obvious.  Especially when organizations try to manage everything as opposed to looking at the key metrics that tie in to specific performance goals - whether with individual employees, departments, or the organization as a whole. 

In a recent conversation with Allan Wille, the President and CEO of Klipfolio, he discussed that one of the trends within the dashboard industry is the expansion of dashboard use to include non-management employees and the customization of metrics towards each individual or group based on their role within the organization - basically the advent of operational BI through the use of data visualization. 

After being on a semi-hiatus for about two weeks and being overall holiday time, I don't have much to report on the business intelligence front.  However, with a continued talk of tough economic times, massive layoffs, and the need to tighten ones belt, whether organizations will really continue to invest in BI and performance management solutions becomes questionable. It's still too early in the year to tell whether or not marketing investments and initiatives by vendors will help ease organizations out of their fear of spending on software.  However, one good thing about business intelligence and performance management in general is that because of the promises of helping increase performance while potentially lowering costs, organizations that tend to over spend and under perform will need to account for their spending more than in the past.  Consequently, the role of BI may become more important in many organizations...