Making Dynamic Excel Dashboard Charts With Tables

BySteve True

Everyone understands that it's tricky to maintain charts when it comes to Excel. When time progresses and there are new data points it can be difficult to add these to the graph. Everybody as well knows that an Excel dashboard requires dynamic charts. So that when newer data is incorporated, the particular chart updates itself.

The primary problem that most beginning Excel Dashboard users have when creating Charts using Excel is that the moment after they have made the chart it is very difficult to maintain. Perhaps you only want to put an additional data point but you have to change every series in order to add the latest data. This could be a difficult process, especially when there are plenty of chart series inside the Excel Dashboard.

Since most beginner Excel dashboard designers have no idea how to do dynamic graphs, they usually utilize placeholders for upcoming data within their Business Dashboard. This means that there's no need to modify the chart right up until the end of the placeholders have been achieved, nevertheless, it is not a helpful Dashboard Layout for many reasons. The major reason is that it creates a lot of empty unused space inside the dashboard chart as a placeholder intended for upcoming data. Excel dashboard real estate (dashboard space) is essential as well as must be maximized as much as possible. The option of developing data placeholders is a waste of space in virtually any Excel business dashboard.

The perfect answer for just about any Excel dashboard template would be to create it Dynamically! Imagine a chart that updates by itself when information is added...that would be outstanding! And it is even easy for beginners.

You may ask yourself...can a dynamic chart in Excel be created having just a few steps?

Certainly! There are many ways to come up with a dynamic Excel chart. Here is the fastest way, but there are more complex ways to manage these types of activities where tables are not the best answer.

One of the easiest ways for a beginning user to create a dynamic chart was first available in Excel 2007 as well as in Excel 2010 (Excel for Microsoft Windows). When utilizing these kinds of versions, the user should place the information within an Excel table before you make the chart and after that the chart will dynamically update when newer data series are added in.

If the data series is updated within a table after which a chart was created through the table, the Excel Dashboard chart automatically will become dynamic without the need for Excel VBA coding or sophisticated formulas.

Isn't that simple? Using tables for dynamic charts is quite simple to accomplish and should be applied whenever possible.

There are some limitations as the data has to be easily put into a table and can cause it to be challenging to customize the chart far beyond the standard style. This may not be a problem as many Excel Dashboards or perhaps for a standard executive or business demonstration, you may just need to create a basic graph that should be kept up to date quickly without having plenty of detail and thinking.

A simple dynamic table centered chart for your company or executive dash panel might be the perfect fit.

Learn more techniques on How-to Make Dynamic Excel Chart Templates with Video Tutorials at:

http://www.exceldashboardtemplates.com

Steve True is the author of Excel Dashboard Templates website content which is a site dedicated to company and executive dashboard template design.

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