Business KPI Dashboard
Consolidates key performance indicators into a single executive view with traffic-light status indicators, trend arrows, and quarter-over-quarter comparisons. Designed to surface the metrics that matter most without requiring drill-down.
Executive - Business KPI Dashboard.xlsx
Excel (.xlsx) — No macros — Works in Excel, Google Sheets, LibreOffice
What This Spreadsheet Solves
- KPIs are scattered across multiple reports and systems
- No at-a-glance status view for executive meetings
- Trend direction (improving or declining) is unclear from raw numbers
- Quarter-over-quarter performance changes require manual calculation
- Threshold-based alerts for off-track metrics do not exist
Who This Is For
- CEOs and managing directors reviewing business health
- Board members consuming quarterly performance reports
- Chiefs of staff preparing executive briefing materials
- Department heads aligning team metrics to company KPIs
Inputs
- textKPI Name
- #Current Period Value
- #Prior Period Value
- #Target Value
- textKPI Unit ($ / % / #)
Outputs
- Traffic-light status per KPI (green/amber/red)
- Trend indicator (up/down/flat) per KPI
- Quarter-over-quarter change (absolute and percentage)
- KPIs on track vs off track count
- Executive summary narrative of overall health
How Calculations Work
Each KPI's current value is compared against its target to assign a traffic-light status: green (at or above target), amber (within a configurable tolerance), red (below tolerance). Trend is determined by comparing the current period to the prior period. QoQ change is calculated as (current minus prior) divided by prior. The dashboard aggregates all KPI statuses into an overall health score and generates a summary narrative highlighting metrics that changed status.
Example Use Case
Scenario: 8 KPIs tracked. Revenue: $1.2M (target $1.15M). Gross margin: 41% (target 45%). Churn: 4.2% (target below 3%). NPS: 52 (target 50). CAC: $340 (target below $300). MRR growth: 6% (target 5%). Headcount: 48 (target 50). Cash: $890K (target $800K).
Result: 5 green, 1 amber (headcount at 96% of target), 2 red (gross margin 4 points below, churn 1.2 points above). Overall health: 62.5% on track. QoQ: revenue up 8%, gross margin down 2 points. Narrative: 'Revenue and growth metrics are strong. Margin and churn require immediate attention. Headcount is slightly behind hiring plan.'
What You Get — 5 Sheets
Technical Details
Frequently Asked Questions
How many KPIs should I track?
Between 6 and 12. Fewer than 6 may miss important areas; more than 12 dilutes focus. Choose metrics that directly reflect strategic priorities.
How do I set the amber threshold?
Default is within 10% of target. Adjust in CONFIG per KPI. Tight thresholds (5%) provide earlier warnings; wide thresholds (15%) reduce noise for volatile metrics.
Can I mix different KPI units?
Yes. Each KPI has its own unit type (dollar, percentage, count). The dashboard normalizes the traffic-light logic regardless of unit.
How is the executive narrative generated?
The narrative template in CONFIG uses rules: it highlights KPIs that changed status (green to amber, amber to red), notes the strongest and weakest performers, and summarizes the overall on-track percentage.
Should targets change each quarter?
Update targets when strategy shifts or when annual targets are broken into quarterly milestones. Keep targets stable within a planning period to enable meaningful trend comparison.
Download Business KPI Dashboard
Ready to use immediately. Enter your data in the INPUT sheet, see results in OUTPUT.