Our dashboards on dashboards

With the recent release of the fundraising suite of dashboards, it’s hard not to get caught up in the excitement as we continue to build the Insights Advancement program. Converting data to useful information should be the goal of any organization, but it takes time to become truly data driven. It is a challenge to not only understand what the data is telling us, but to action the new information at our fingertips.
 
One of the objectives in Forward Together (2-8) is to “increase use of business analytics to improve all aspects of business decision making and operational effectiveness.” How we measure the success of this objective will certainly change and evolve with program maturity and our own journey along what is often referred to as the "information ladder."

At the inception of the Insights program, one specific metric we focused on for fiscal 2020-21 was the average number of unique users per month accessing dashboards. We targeted a 30-per-cent increase and ended up just shy of this goal at 26 per cent (54 unique users) across Advancement. It is encouraging to see the adoption of dashboards reflected in the metrics as they become embedded in the business of the unit. This was particularly true of early fundraising dashboards, and, more recently, the Alumni Engagement dashboard, which has become the second-most viewed dashboard this year within Advancement.  

Much of this information can be gleaned from the Insights Advancement Usage visualization – our dashboard on dashboards. The tool provides insights into several key data points, such as views by specific dashboards, users and units, unique users, as well as historical perspectives. We encourage colleagues across Advancement to use this dashboard to explore our collective engagement with these new information tools.   

Keen observers will note that unique users have plateaued from earlier gains. This is to be expected with program maturity but also reflects strategic deployment and the units who utilize specific dashboards in their day-to-day. In June, ITM communicated our fiscal approach for dashboard creation this year. It is hoped that this plan results in a more balanced distribution of dashboards as we broaden content across the organization.       

As we continue to deliver on our plan for the fiscal period, recent deployments are instructive on what sets the stage for success. The development of these sophisticated tools is not a spectator sport, but rather a committed partnership that does not end with the technical development. Pat Galloway, our technical lead on the Insights program, sums it up well:

“The creation of a successful and impactful dashboard is a collaborative effort that requires a strong partnership between the business champion and technical lead. The business champion brings subject matter expertise on both the business and strategic goals of the program and, once the dashboard goes live, they serve as educators for business users to ensure future adoption of the dashboard.”

Congratulations and thanks to all involved for your success to date in the continued development of Advancement’s dashboarding resources. We look forward to building the program in the upcoming months to promote widespread data discovery and expanded visibility into key metrics and programmatic goals for Advancement.     

Let’s celebrate Queen’s Day! 

Join the Queen’s community and share your tricolour pride on Sunday, Oct. 16, to celebrate Queen’s Day – the day in 1841 that Queen Victoria issued the university's Royal Charter. 

Post a photo of yourself, your loved ones (even your pets!) to Twitter (@queensualumni) or Instagram (@queensu_alumni) and we will share your excitement. We will also share your photos in the ALTogether Now newsletter on Oct. 17. 

If you don’t use Twitter, no problem! Send your photos to Danielle by email or by text at 613-217-7586. 

Employee Spotlight

The Employee Spotlight celebrates the arrival of our new and existing staff by profiling responses they share through a fun and informal survey that will help us get to know them better. Be sure to review these profiles and use these fun facts and tidbits to find commonalities, embrace differences and spark a conversation. 

Last week, we welcomed a new colleague to Advancement: 

Kate MacDonald in the position of Senior Development Officer, Leadership Giving.  Learn more about Kate and what languages she speaks!

Jobs with Advancement

We need your recruitment help. Know great talent that would be a good addition to our team? If so, please promote the vacancies below with your networks and let’s find some amazing new team members.

Applications (including a cover letter and résumé) must be submitted through CareerQ. For additional information on this posting, please reach out to either Carla Ferreira Rodrigues or the hiring manager for the position you are interested in.